


Extra Dumplings

by IngridAnne24



Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-05
Updated: 2016-08-11
Packaged: 2018-05-24 19:28:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 28,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6164011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IngridAnne24/pseuds/IngridAnne24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Angie catches Peggy during some private time, and their relationship takes a turn from there. Slight AU for season 2 (where Angie is more than just Peggy's "roommate")</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> After the heartbreaking season 2 finale of Agent Carter, I felt invigorated to write more Cartinelli.
> 
> I'd imagine this takes place before Peggy goes to LA. Also, I got this idea from cartinelliheadcanons.tumblr.com
> 
> Apologies for the lack of smut. I have plans to write something similar.
> 
> Edit: 4/6/2016: This was originally written as a silly little oneshot, but it ended up developing into one of my longest fanfics.

It was one of the worst days Angie had had in a while. It was busy, they were short-staffed, and the asshole count seemed to be up that day. When Angie finally got back to the house, her head was pounding. She just wanted to get into her pajamas, get a glass of wine, and curl up on the couch.

When she came through the door, she saw that the umbrella Peggy had brought to work with her was back in the umbrella holder, and one of the hall lights was on, meaning Peggy was home.

“Pegs?” Angie called. “English, you home?”

She didn't hear anything, so she headed upstairs. When she got to Peggy's door, she thought her heard Peggy say her name, so she walked into Peggy's room. Peggy was lying on her bed, under the covers, but she was awake. She jerked up into a upright position very quickly.

“English, there you are,” she said. “You wouldn't believe the day I had. At least five guys slapped my ass, and some kid threw up, most of the staff is out sick.”

“That's, um, terrible, Angie, but--”

“It was bullshit. People are so rude. Can't they see I was busting my ass to bring them their food?”

“I'm sorry, but--”

“Is it so hard to get that waitresses are people too? I mean, it's just bullshit. Anyway, what're you doin' home? You sick?”

Peggy shook her head, but Angie could see that her face was bright red. On top of that, her legs were splayed slightly underneath the covers. Angie stared at her for a few seconds before it dawned on her.

“...Oh. Oooh!” Angie felt herself blush.

“I don't know what you think I'm doing, but I'm not,” Peggy said, her voice shaking and her eyes darting around.

“Peggy, it's fine if you were mastur--”

“I wasn't!” 

Angie should have left, but she was too amused. She rarely saw Peggy this flustered. 

Peggy removed her hands from underneath the sheets, which just confirmed Angie's suspicions, and sat up straight. Angie also noted Peggy was keeping the lower half of her body covered.

“What do you want for dinner?” Peggy asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

“Chinese?”

“Sounds good.” Peggy cleared her throat. 

Angie decided she didn't want to make Peggy any more uncomfortable. “I'm gonna' go get changed into some comfy clothes, so, you can get back to whatever it was you were doing.”

Peggy opened her mouth to say something, but Angie left the room before she could. After changing into pajamas, she went back to Peggy's room; knocking this time.

“Come in,” Peggy called. She wearing a robe and was out of bed.

“Hey, Pegs, sorry for busting in like that. I've been living by myself for too long, I think.”

“It's fine,” Peggy said, meeting Angie's eye. She looked less embarrassed, but there was still a slight red tint on her cheeks.

“How was your day?”

Peggy pursed her lips. “Stressful. There is a big case coming up and everyone is scrambling to get involved.”

Angie nodded sympathetically. She debated embarrassing Peggy again, but didn't like that Peggy couldn't meet her eye before, and now she was. 

“Angie,” Peggy said suddenly, breaking the brief silence.

“Yeah?”

“About earlier...” Angie could see a blush rising in Peggy's cheeks. Peggy swallowed.

“Peggy, it's fine. Whatever you were doing, it's your business. Wanna' hear a story?”

Peggy nodded.

“When I was sixteen, I came home from school and I was the only one home. So, I went to my room... Well, long story short, my mom came home earlier than I expected and found me with my hand up my jumper.”

Peggy covered her mouth and stifled a snorting laugh. “Oh, dear, Angie.”

Angie shrugged. “Eh, I just got a few smacks on the hands with a ruler and my mom ranting that I'll go blind.”

Peggy's face softened. “I'm sorry.”

“Don't be. But my point was, whatever you were doing, some dummy will walk in on you. Feel free to do whatever whenever you want. ...You know what I mean,” Angie added when Peggy gave her a funny look. “I'll knock next time.”

“I appreciate that.”

“Well, I'm gonna' go order the food,” Angie said, turning towards the door. “The usual?”

“Yes, but could we get extra dumplings? I'm pretty hungry tonight.”

Angie almost said “I bet you are” but she held her tongue. She was halfway out the door when another thought occurred to her. Something she heard before she caught Peggy; her name. Peggy didn't even know Angie was home.

“Wait,” she said, slowly turning and pointing at Peggy.

Peggy tilted her head slightly. “Yes?”

Angie opened her mouth, held it open for a few seconds, then shut it. She could feel her face flushing, so she turned back to the door and shook her head.

“Nevermind. Extra dumplings, yeah,” she mumbled, promptly exiting the room. She'll bring it up later.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a continuation of the first chapter, just from Peggy's perspective. I'm gonna pretend stuff like this happened between season 1 and 2.
> 
> I'd name this chapter: Peggy is a horny dork

Peggy Carter liked to pretend she was a dignified person, at least in front of other people. She would admit, though, that her eating habits were slightly less dignified; sometimes she couldn't help she ate with her mouth open. But she tries to not cry in front of people, and she would certainly never admit that she masturbates. That is something Agent Peggy Carter should not do, because she should be above giving into sexual urges. She isn't. She's a human being who has feelings, someone who lives a stressful life, and also happens to live with an attractive young woman.

She would never admit she sometimes thinks of that attractive young woman when she relieves her stress, because she doesn't do it consciously. Sometimes those bright blue eyes and that wide smile just pop into her head.

She wasn't sure if Angie knew this, because Peggy was aware she wasn't the quietest. Her first partner to actually know what he was doing told her this. Again, it was involuntary, so she got in the habit of biting her lip. She thought this was working out until one day, when she was home alone. 

Angie caught her. To Angie's credit, she took it well. Angie was too sweet.

The thing was, while Peggy was beyond embarrassed, once the initial shock wore off she couldn't stop thinking about Angie staring at her. Those wide, blue eyes. 

To say it was a little erotic, well, Peggy didn't want to admit that. Because she doesn't give into primal urges and she doesn't think about the fact that Angie catching her was erotic.

No, she is above her basic, primal urges because she is Peggy Carter. The fact that she touches herself is more of a stress relief, than anything else. It was a coping mechanism sometimes during the war. There was no sexual agenda behind it; it was purely stress relief and to briefly help get her mind off the awful things happening around her.

These days, however, while it isn't as though her life is easy, it was certainly different—much less stressful—than her time in the war. These days, the things she did in the supposed privacy of her bedroom, it was some stress relief, some other reasons. Perhaps Angie did have something to do with it. Plus, it had quite some time since she had been intimate with another person.

It had been about two weeks since Angie had caught her and Peggy had noticed how careful Angie was being. She knocked every time she came to Peggy's bedroom, and she even announced her entrance to any other room, as if Peggy could be touching herself in the kitchen. 

The worst part of this, though, was the fact that Peggy had stopped for these two weeks. Her fear of being caught outweighed the slight fact it had turned her on. This translated into her stress building up and her temper being shorter than normal. Her other stress relief was beating up a punching bag, which Angie also caught her doing.

“Whoa, whoa, Pegs, what'd that thing do to you?” Angie asked, amused, when she found Peggy in the weight room.

“It existed and I needed to punch something,” Peggy grunted, plowing a strong punch straight into the front of it.

Angie was silent while Peggy landed a few more punches. Peggy turned to Angie when she stopped to catch her breath.

“Another stressful day?” Angie asked gently.

Peggy wiped the sweat from her forehead with a rag and nodded. “One of my coworkers is being an outright arse, like that's anything new.”

Angie was grinning at her. “I love it when you say British things.”

Peggy met Angie's bright blue eyes and a shiver went up her spine. “Well, I love it when you say American things.”

Still grinning, Angie inspected the punching bag. “Can ya' show me how to punch?”

“You want me to teach you to punch?”

Angie nodded eagerly. “Well, I know how to punch, I have brothers, but I'm probably not doin' it right.”

“Okay, show me how you form a fist,” Peggy said, walking closed to Angie.

Angie did and Peggy could already see a problem. Her thumb was tucked underneath her fingers, so Peggy corrected her, moving her thumb to the outside of the fist.

“Now, punch the bag,” Peggy instructed.

When Angie punched, the bag visibly moved. She did it again with her other hand, then again, and again. Angie was far from weak; surprisingly strong for someone so skinny.

“Very nice,” Peggy said.

Angie beamed at her and Peggy's heart leapt. 

“Can you show me how to fight?” Angie asked, her eyes bright.

Peggy bit her lip. “I don't know, Angie. I have years of practice and I fought in the war.”

Angie clasped her hands together. “Pleeeeease, Pegs? Just a couple tips. Shouldn't I know some self-defense when I'm coming home late?”

Angie was right, Peggy admitted to herself. “Fine. I'll show you how to escape an attack from behind. Turn around.”

Angie did as she was told, while Peggy stood right behind Angie and put her arms around her. Angie smelled really nice.

“Now, I want you to slam your foot onto the top of my foot as hard as you can.”

“What? No, I'm not gonna' do that,” Angie said, turning her head slightly to look at Peggy.

“Angie, you'll have to be tough if you are ever—God forbid—attacked.”

Angie paused, then taking a deep breath, Peggy felt Angie's leg lift before it came down, hard, on Peggy's foot. Peggy recoiled.

“Now, shove me back as far as you can,” Peggy told her.

Angie did, then suddenly swung her fist into Peggy's stomach. Peggy gasped and moved back from Angie.

“Oh, jeez, Pegs, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that!”

Angie put her hand on Peggy's arm, but Peggy laughed weakly, one hand on her stomach. “That was good. That's what you want to do. Use those instincts. It's a good thing I didn't tell you to go for the groin, which is another very effective tactic. Let's try it again.”

Peggy grabbed Angie again, pinning her arms. Angie did the foot stomp again, then kicked Peggy in the shin, and finally, actually tackled Peggy to the matted floor.

“How's that?” Angie asked, clearly proud of herself as she sat on Peggy's legs.

“Very, um, impressive,” Peggy said, somewhat in shock.

“You didn't go easy on me?”

“I actually didn't. You caught me off guard, especially how strong you are.”

“Well, that wasn't easy. You're like one solid muscle.”

When Angie stopped talking, Peggy became very aware of Angie sitting on her. And the fact Angie was panting, and the fact Peggy was panting.

“I need to get up,” Peggy said suddenly and loudly, gently pushing Angie off her. “I think that's enough.”

“Okay, but is it bad that I tackled you?” Angie asked, her eyes wide.

Peggy shook her head, probably too hard. “No, no, that was fine. I liked that you improvised.”

“Then, what's wrong? You look all... flustered.”

Peggy didn't want to tell Angie that after two weeks, Peggy had a lot of pent up sexual energy and that she was getting turned on by seemingly trivial things. She certainly didn't want to tell Angie that fighting Angie was one of those moments.

“I'm fine. It's late. I have to get up early tomorrow,” Peggy stuttered out. She scrambled to her feet. “Goodnight, Angie.”

Once Peggy was in her room, she leaned against the door and sighed. This was ridiculous, she was above her basic urges, she told herself. She was Peggy Carter. She was above her urges.

She got changed into her nightgown, turned out the lights, and got into bed. She did not go to sleep, though, and instead stared up at the dark ceiling for probably much too long. She looked at the clock on her nightstand and saw that it said 8:54.

“Oh bloody Hell,” she breathed out. 

Peggy gave up. She reached underneath her nightgown and dipped her fingers between her legs. Her eyes were closed and was trying to keep her mind blank; she didn't want any specific people popping into her head.

Except she wasn't enjoying it. She didn't enjoy it until a certain blue-eyed girl with curly dark-blonde hair crept into her head. Guilt filled her chest for a brief period, before the pleasure took over; then she didn't care anymore. The only thing she could focus on was her own hand and those blue eyes.

When that wonderful flood of warmth spread through her body, a loud gasp escaped her. She froze, worried Angie would hear her, then fell back onto her pillow, allowing herself to relax into small aftershocks coursing through her.

She fell asleep shortly after that. She wasn't lying when she said she had an early morning, and she was greeted by Angie in the kitchen the next morning.

“'Morning, English, sleep well?” Angie chirped, handing Peggy a cup of coffee.

“I did, Angie, thank you very much,” Peggy responded as she took the cup. She slept better than she had for the past, oh, two weeks.

“I didn't hurt you, did I?”

Peggy laughed a little bit too loudly. Angie was stronger than she expected, but she was used to men twice the size of Angie hitting her.

“I'm sorry, Angie. No, you did not hurt me.”

“Good.”

There was a brief silence while Peggy drank her coffee, then she handed the cup to Angie.

“Thank you, Angie, that was delicious. Have a good day, Darling.” 

Angie moved towards her and Peggy instinctively kissed her on the cheek when she was close enough. Then Angie's arms came around Peggy.

“Oh, you were hugging me,” Peggy mumbled.

Angie giggled. “Uh, yeah, English.”

Peggy quickly returned the hug, awkwardly patted Angie on the back, and moved back.

“Have a good day,” Peggy repeated, her voice cracking somewhat, before she quickly made her way out the door. If Angie said anything, Peggy didn't hear her.

“What in Heaven's name are you doing, Peggy?” She asked herself when she was outside.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy catches Angie this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just gonna keep randomly adding chapters to this story.
> 
> Peggy needs to communicate, bros.

Did Peggy like tip-toeing around her roommate? Absolutely not. Angie was not treating her any differently after she walked in on Peggy—except for the cautiousness about entering Peggy's room, which Angie had relaxed about. Other than that, Peggy had no reason to be so awkward around Angie, but she was.

Was the awkwardness because of Angie catching her, or was it something else? Peggy was a pretty private person. She never liked talked about her feelings and she certainly never liked to talk about her sex life—whether with another person or just by herself—so being caught in such a private moment was somewhat disconcerting. But that was a couple weeks ago and Angie clearly didn't care, so why did Peggy? 

She had always cared about Angie, since the moment she met that somewhat hyper woman. She liked that fast way she spoke, she liked how she always managed to make Peggy feel better, and Peggy liked she was just Angie.

Peggy didn't have a lot of female friends growing up; her rough and tumble nature was usually too much for the little girls raised to be uptight and stuffy like their parents. Peggy never had anything against other women and she certainly would have liked more female friends if given the choice, but she didn't and she didn't always know how to deal with the women she was around. Her former roommate, Colleen—may she rest in peace—was one of her first female friends, and while Peggy only knew her for a short time, Colleen was still teaching Peggy one important thing; what feelings for a friend feel like. Her feelings for a female friend did not feel that much differently from her feelings for her male friends, despite what she thought when she first met Angie.

To put it simply, Angie was different. It started as something good and was continuing to develop.

It felt like when she met Steve Rogers. They were different people; Steve was rather shy and humble, while Angie was loud and bold. But they were both good people; people Peggy cared deeply for, people she trusted.

If Steve had ever “caught” Peggy the way Angie did she imagined she would be just as horrified. And Steve probably wouldn't have handled it as well as Angie did, the poor, sweet dear.

It was a slow day at work, for once there weren't any threats to the country or Peggy's own life, so she had time to consider these things. 

“Hey, Marge,” Thompson said sharply, knocking his knuckles on her desk, “Peggy, why don't you go home? There's nothing to do here.”

“Maybe you're just trying to get me out of the office, maybe there's some secret case I'm unaware of,” Peggy said, smirking slightly.

Thompson rolled his eyes. “Go home, Peggy.”

So she did. It was quiet in the apartment, meaning Angie wasn't home, so Peggy ate a quick snack, and went up to her room. She laid down on the bed and ended up falling asleep. She wasn't sure how long it had been, but it was dark when she woke up. The hall light was on, but it was still quiet.

After Peggy quickly fixed her disheveled hair, she strolled out of her room, and looked up and down the hallway. Angie's light was on.

“Angie?” Peggy called softly. Nothing. She walked closer to the door, quietly, and then she heard it.

“Peggy!”

It was more of a shout, something out of desperation, and Peggy felt a twinge of panic as she threw Angie's door open. She was expecting Angie to be in some sort of trouble; someone taking their revenge on Peggy out on Angie. What she did see was not what she expected.

What she saw was a completely naked Angie, straddling a pillow, and thrusting against it. In a moment of shock, Peggy stared, while Angie froze and made eye contact with Peggy. It was a deer-in-the-headlights moment for both of them.

Peggy turned and walked out of the room. She suddenly found herself in the living room, staring at a picture of Howard Stark on the wall.

“Are you doing this to us, Howard?” She asked the painting.

“Peggy?” A meek voice said behind her.

“I'm sorry for walking in on you,” Peggy mumbled, slowly turning to Angie. Angie had put on a robe and looked very flushed; whether that was from embarrassment or because of what she had been doing before Peggy found her, Peggy didn't know.

“Tit for tat, I guess,” Angie shrugged, obviously trying to appear nonchalant. “But, I'd think you'd learn your lesson from me and knock.”

“Well, I was going to, but then I heard you shout. My name,” Peggy added the last part as evenly as she could, but her eyes couldn't hold eye contact with Angie that long. Her next question flowed out of her before she could stop herself. “Were you thinking about me?”

Angie's lower jaw stuck out a little bit and she crossed her arms. “Like you're one to talk.”

Peggy was a little thrown off by Angie's stand-offish attitude. “Excuse me?”

“You know what I mean, Pegs,” Angie said, walking towards Peggy. Her expression was already relaxing. “I heard you.”

Peggy stared at Angie for a good, solid minute while she tried to gather the right words to say. She had a feeling that Angie had heard her, but she never considered what she would actually say if Angie brought it up.

“I was thinking about you,” Angie said, apparently getting impatient with the awkward silence. “I'm sorry.”

Peggy held out her hand for Angie's, who took it. “It's okay,” she sighed. “I have thought about you, too.”

“At least your way is more subtle. You had to catch me humping a pillow,” Angie mumbled and Peggy laughed.

“I'm sorry. Yes, well, we all have our ways.”

It was a strange conversation and one she never really expected to have. She had imagined it a couple times, but it usually had Angie getting very uncomfortable. It wasn't like this.

“What does this mean?” Angie asked.

“What do you mean?”

“We were...” Angie's right wrist twisted as she tried to find the words. “You were and... I was. You know.”

“I know what you mean. What do you think it means?” She asked Angie, because she really didn't know.

Angie loudly sucked on her bottom lip. “Well, for me, it's been a while since I've had sex. Plus, ya' know, you're pretty.”

“I could say the same for myself,” Peggy agreed. “I'm not usually so... driven by these urges, but--”

“Bullshit. This is a big place, but the walls are pretty thin and you're pretty loud.”

Peggy suddenly felt very warm. So Angie had heard her.

“It's fine, English. I already told you it's fine. You do it, I do it, other people do it.”

“I know that,” Peggy said, sounding more defensive than she meant to.

“I'm sure ya' do, but you seem a little uptight about it. And I'm saying this as a Catholic girl.”

Peggy chewed on her lower lip. Angie was being very insightful, almost too insightful. She didn't really like it when people tried to dig deeper into her life, or tried to figure her out. Angie didn't seem like the kind of person to do that, but those light blue eyes were staring directly at her, reading her. Then, a question popped into Peggy's head.

“Do you always do it like that? With the pillow?”

Angie's face flushed again, but she smiled. “No. This was a special occasion.”

“What was the special occasion?”

Angie's smile grew, but she didn't say anything.

“What?” Peggy asked.

Angie still didn't say anything, but her eyes were twinkling and her cheeks were dimpling.

“Angela Martinelli, tell me,” Peggy demanded, hands on hips.

“I got a part! I have lines!” Angie squealed.

“Oh, Angie!” Peggy threw her arms around Angie and hugged her. “What is it? What's the part?”

“I play a sassy Italian girl. Perfect, huh? It's a little play, written and directed by a new guy. But it seems really good. And I get a death scene.”

“It sounds exciting, Angie.”

“Oh, also...” Angie pulled away from the hug and chuckled awkwardly. “I have a sex scene.”

“Oh,” was all Peggy could say.

“Yeah, so I will be naked. Briefly.”

Peggy just nodded. “Well, if you are comfortable doing that...”

Angie's head tilted side to side, her mouth twisted. “I'm not not comfortable with it. The directer assured me I'd be mostly covered by a blanket, and the sex scene is quick. Ain't that always the case?”

“For the name of art, I suppose,” Peggy said carefully, but she wasn't sure how she felt about this. She knew actresses could often be taken advantage of, especially sweet actresses like Angie. But if Angie was excited, she was excited. “Congratulations.”

Angie was practically vibrating and it made Peggy feel really good to see Angie so happy. It almost made her forget the fact that both women had seen too much of each other in the past few weeks. And it almost made her forget the fact that Angie had almost torn down that wall with that 'what does this mean?' question, while Peggy was able to carefully avoid a direct answer. Unfortunately, it was still a topic Peggy was unable to consider completely

“Why don't I make dinner?” Angie said, breaking Peggy out of her quiet reverie. “Spaghetti?”

“That sounds perfect.”

Angie swiped her hand over Peggy's elbow as she passed and Peggy's breath hitched. When Angie left the room, Peggy began to consider some things.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peggy sees Angie's play and they have a talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lack of communication was bothering me, so I had to fix it.
> 
> This was difficult to write because I normally don't like to ignore canon (isn't that the purpose of fanfiction, though?) and while it doesn't necessarily ignore canon because this is pre-season 2, why would Peggy be into two dudes when Angie is across the country? 
> 
> That really is the question, isn't it?

Something about both women walking in on each other pleasuring oneself is a great way to help each other open up to each other. At least, that was how it was with Angie. Peggy wasn't quite there. No, Angie seemed to have no more boundaries with Peggy.

One example was when Angie loudly called to Peggy to bring her toilet paper, and Peggy, being the good roommate she was, brought her some, not realizing Angie was still using the facilities.

“Thanks, English,” was Angie's response, accompanied by her usual smile. “Shoulda' checked before, huh?”

“Yes,” was all Peggy could say.

“Oh, you're on for the play tonight, right?” Angie asked her before Peggy could slip from the room.

Peggy nodded.

“Great! I'll try to get you front row. Are you okay?”

Peggy nodded again. “It's just...” She gestured to Angie.

“Oh, jeez, I'm sorry. I'm used to a full house and privacy was not a thing. I don't know how many times I'd be takin' a bath and one of my brothers busted in the bathroom to take a shit. Sorry.”

Peggy couldn't help but laugh. “No, I understand. I was in the military, but privacy was still something I tried very hard to maintain regardless.”

There was a brief silence and Peggy did feel a little awkward again, but Angie seemed perfectly fine. 

“Okay, well,” Peggy said. “I will let you... Yes, I need to run to the office, get some work done, and I will meet you at the theatre.”

“Sounds good. The ticket's on your dresser.”

Angie really was a fascinating person, Peggy found herself thinking as she made her way to the office. Always full of surprises. And yet, they had seen a lot of each other—in various ways—lately, but they still had not discussed the circumstances surrounding that. Or at least, Angie had tried, but Peggy carefully diverted the conversation away from anything too personal; one of her many talents. But she had admitted to herself that they should talk about it. Two women masturbating to each other and not discussing it seemed a little strange.

She had no real reason to go to the office, she just needed some quiet time to think. She was looking forward to Angie's play; Angie had been working hard on it and she was clearly very excited. Peggy did feel some trepidation, though, because of the sex scene. It was theatrical and for the purpose of driving the story further and it was art, Peggy told herself, multiple times. And if Angie wasn't concerned, she shouldn't be either. And most importantly, this was Angie's biggest part.

Peggy managed to get some paperwork done before heading to the theatre. When she got inside, there was a seat marked with “English (Peggy Carter)” in the front row. Shortly after taking her seat, the lights went down and it began. Angie didn't come in until about ten minutes in, but her arrival was certainly not something to be missed. Angie in real life was boisterous enough, but Angie on stage was something else entirely. She was a real presence. And her accent was doubled.

Peggy was watching the other actors, but when Angie was on stage, she was transfixed. Mesmerized. She had always known Angie was talented, but to really see it in action was something else.

She had heard Angie practice enough to know when the sex scene was coming, so she mentally prepared herself. The man who this was happening with was attractive enough, and Angie assured her he was an absolute gentleman. This did little to soothe Peggy's worry, but she kept her mouth shut.

The scene was here and it was happening quickly. Before Peggy knew it, Angie was completely naked on stage with an equally naked man. They got onto the bed in the middle of the stage, kissed for a little bit before the act of intercourse was implied from under the covers. Then Angie let out a moan. It was acting, of course, but it sounded so real. And it sounded a lot like that day Peggy had caught her and the pillow.

A shiver went down Peggy's spine and her belly felt warm. She noted Angie was on top and she could see every subtle muscle in Angie's long back. 

There was an especially loud, long moan from Angie, and it was over. The lights on the stage went dark. It was intermission. Peggy decided to stay where she was because, honestly, her knees were trembling a little bit.

When the lights came back on, it was a post-coital scene. Angie and the man were lying in bed, stroking each other's faces, talking in soft, relaxed voices. Then, there was a knock on the “door” and a woman from an earlier scene came in. She angrily inquired about the “fucking slut” in bed with the man. The man tried to explain; a very weak explanation, in Peggy's opinion. The woman obviously agreed, judging by the gun she pulls out. Angie, who was wrapped in a blanket, jumped to her feet, trying to explain herself. The other woman was not having any of it and there a loud “bang!”, the lights flash, and Angie is on the floor, fake blood spilling from her forehead.

Suddenly, Peggy felt sick. She was reminded of Colleen. She knew this was fake, but it was all too close to home. 

She had to leave. She quickly walked out of the theatre and out onto the street, carefully breathing through her nose. She had seen many, many people die in front of her, she had personally shot people, but to see someone she cared so much about “die” in front of her... To see Angie “die.”

She went home after that and waited for Angie to get home. When her roommate did get home—late--Angie was giddy from a post-performance high. Then she saw Peggy and her grin disappeared.

“You left,” was the first thing Angie said.

“I'm sorry, Angie, I just...”

“I had to keep my eyes opened when my character died, so I saw you get up and leave. Why?”

Angie's eyes seemed to get lighter when she was angry; icy, almost. It terrified Peggy.

“You did a wonderful job, Angie, I swear to you. It's just... seeing you die like that, it was too much for me.”

“Pegs, you were in the freakin' army, and that was fake.”

“I know. Angie, I want to tell you something,” Peggy said, patting the sofa for Angie to sit down. When she did, Peggy started talking. “Remember the roommate I had before I moved into the Griffith? Well, she didn't leave, she died. Shot, in our apartment. Right in the middle of her forehead.”

Angie's eyes were wide and were rimmed with tears. “Oh, Pegs, I'm so sorry. Did they find who did it?”

“Yes. That is in the past now. But it was upsetting to see my best friend hurt in the same way, even if it was fake. You mean a lot to me and I have seen too many people I care about die.”

Angie hugged Peggy, tightly and buried her face in Peggy's hair.

“I like it when you're honest with me, English.”

“It feels good to be honest. Which brings me to the other thing I'd like to talk about.” Peggy pulled back and rested her hands in her lap. “Yes, I was thinking about you when I was... you know.”

“Touching yourself,” Angie helpfully added.

“Yes, that.” Peggy cleared her throat and flashed a tight smile. “I was thinking about you, but not actively. I mean, I tried to not think about you because you're my friend, but I can't always help where my brain goes.”

Angie had a strange look on her face. Her cheeks were tinged with pink, but she was smiling with her teeth showing. 

“What?” Peggy asked.

“I thought about you,” Angie mumbled.

“I know you did, Angie. I heard you, remember?” Peggy chuckled. 

“I mean actively. I never tried to not think about you. ...Is that bad?” Angie asked, biting her bottom lip.

Peggy reached for Angie's hand. “Not at all.”

“It's just, if a guy told me he was jerkin' off to me, I'd slap him into next Tuesday. Why is this different?”

Peggy was surprised at how quickly an answer came into her head. “Because we trust each other, and I care about you. I won't pretend it's not a strange situation, and I understand what you mean, but I trust you wholeheartedly. Besides, I wasn't lying when I said you're pretty.”

The giggle that came from Angie made Peggy smile. “I trust you, too, English. And,” Angie gripped Peggy's hand, “I'm sorry you had to see that scene in the play. If I'da' known, I woulda' warned you or something.”

Peggy smiled gently. “It's okay. You were dead, anyway, so the best part of the play was gone.”

“How was the sex scene?”

Peggy cleared her throat too many times. “It was, fine. You did a nice job.”

“I didn't moan too much?”

Peggy shook her head and swallowed. “No.”

“It was cold in there so I hope my nipples didn't stick out too much,” Angie mumbled, looking down at her breasts. Peggy was about to say something—something reassuring?--when Angie looked up and grinned.

“You're teasing me,” Peggy stated matter-of-factly.

“Maybe.” Angie rose to her feet. When she turned to Peggy, she was smiling, but it was gentle and subtle. “Are there any other reasons you, you know, to me?”

Angie made a hand gesture to the “you know” that involved circular motions with her finger. Peggy tried to keep her face blank, but she felt the heat rising in her neck. Angie was digging again.

“What do you mean?”

“Don't give me that again, English. You're not dumb.”

The two women locked eyes for a moment; Angie's icy blues and Peggy's deep browns. Angie wasn't blinking. 

“Well, what does it mean for you, Angie? You were doing it too.”

Angie started blinking again and Peggy could see her jaw move side to side. She didn't say anything for a good two minutes, but she stared at Peggy the whole time. 

When she finally spoke, her eyes were watery, but her voice was even. “Maybe I like you.”

She was looking at Peggy like she was expecting Peggy to react more, but Peggy didn't. Because Peggy had a feeling, for awhile now. Even before the awkwardness; Angie was not the most subtle. It just took Peggy awhile to really let it sink in.

Angie was still staring at Peggy, waiting for a response. Peggy smiled at her and took her hand.

“I know you do.”

“You do? You're not upset?”

Peggy scoffed. “Angie, if I wasn't upset you were pleasuring yourself to me, why would I be upset about this?”

“I guess that's true,” Angie conceded. She squeezed Peggy's hand and started staring at her again. “And you?”

“Me?”

“I asked you the question first, remember? You moved it back to me again.”

Peggy looked away from Angie but she could feel her eyes on her. How did she feel about Angie? This was the question she had been trying to answer. It didn't feel quite the same as Steve; it wasn't less, but it was different. But she knew she needed to come up with an answer because she didn't know how much longer Angie was going to wait.

“I care you about,” she said in a whisper.

“You've said that.”

Angie sat back down on the sofa and held Peggy's hands to her chest. “I just need to know.”

Peggy met Angie's eyes and swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. This was the moment she had been fighting with for months. “I love you,” she finally said. She was just as shocked as Angie when the words left her.

“You do,” Angie said, but it wasn't a question. She looked surprised as first, but her face softened. She brought Peggy's hands to her mouth and kissed the tops of her fingers. “I knew it.”

Peggy was still in shock from saying it. It was true, she realized more and more after speaking the words aloud. Once the shock wore off, a comfortable warmth filled her chest and tears came to her eyes.

“Oh, Pegs, I didn't mean ta' make you cry,” Angie chuckled softly, wiping the now falling tears with her knuckle. 

“No, no, it's fine, it's just,” Peggy sniffed, “saying it out loud made it much more real. I don't know why it's affected me so much. I've been in love before.”

Angie clicked her tongue. “I haven't.”

“Really? I find that hard to believe. You're such a romantic person.”

“I've had crushes and I thought I was in love when I was in high school, but it's not like this.”

“Crushes on...?”

“Girls, Pegs. I like girls,” Angie said quickly.

“You've never said that before.”

“Yeah, well, it's not something I tell people. I was raised Catholic, remember? We don't talk about things like that.”

“I wasn't raised Catholic.”

“I know, but it's not easy to shake that off. You never know how people are gonna' react.”

Peggy chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully; so Angie wasn't open about everything. “I thought I had an attraction to a girl once. It may have been just a slight infatuation, or perhaps I was just envious of her. I do know, though, that what I'm feeling for you is something more. Something very special.”

Angie's face lit up. “I've been waiting so long for you to say that, Peggy.”

Angie only said “Peggy” when she either being stern, serious, or completely sincere. Peggy loved all variations of her name, as long as it was coming from Angie. And even if it was coming out in the throes of self-induced passion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note to Angie, if you're tryna' get a girl to like you, calling her into the bathroom while you're pooping probably isn't the way to go.
> 
> Luckily for Angie, Peggy loves her too much to care.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angie and Peggy continue their talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm starting to wonder if this story ignores season 2 happened. It sure feels like that.

The shift in their relationship happened so quickly Peggy hardly had time to process it. It wasn't a bad thing, of course, but to go from pretending her feelings didn't exist to telling Angie she loved her. The confession turned into a much more open relationship and more consistent communication. It was just a day since Peggy's confession, but a lot had changed.

Angie was clearly liking it, the way she stared at Peggy, eyes sparkling, while Peggy spoke. 

“I can't believe you never told me you had a brother,” she said, holding Peggy's hand. “I'm so sorry what happened to him.”

“He died for his country. He was a brave man,” Peggy said softly.

“Just like you.”

Peggy looked right at Angie; she had never considered herself brave or being like her brother. Michael was a great man, both as a soldier and as her brother, so it was difficult to put her at the same level as him.

“I bet you guys were a perfect family. Little Peggy and Michael Carter.”

“Oh, we fought. When I was born, Michael threw an absolute fit and cried for two days and insisted our parents bring me back to wherever I came from. He got over it soon enough. Oh, and when I was three, I punched him hard enough to give him a black eye and he told his friends he got into a fight with a neighborhood bully rather than admit his baby sister did it.”

Angie snorted. “Yeah, well, my oldest brother hid me in a closet because I was crying. Ma didn't find me for an hour.”

“That's awful.”

“Eh,” Angie shrugged. “I learned to put up with a lot of bullshit.”

“Do your brothers have children?”

“My older brother just had a little girl, Elena, and my oldest has two boys and a girl. Ma's givin' me a hard time about not finding a nice man and poppin' out babies.”

Peggy smiled sympathetically. “I'm sorry, Angie. Do you want children?”

“I never really considered it much. When I was younger, before I knew I liked girls but knew men kinda',” Angie held up her hands and made a disgusted face, “grossed me out, I connected having babies with sex with me, so...”

“And if you were with a woman? Would you adopt?”

Angie furrowed her eyebrows. “I don't know.”

Angie was quiet for a couple minutes and Peggy took her hand again. “You're worried what your mother will say.”

“I'm worried what my whole family will say. My very Catholic grandma would probably die and haunt me,” Angie laughed stiffly.

Peggy could tell Angie was covering up her fears with humor. Angie liked to pretend she was brave but she was very insecure about some things, Peggy had figured out after living with her. Well, she was both brave and insecure.

“I sometimes think my brothers know, but they wouldn't say anything.”

“Would they stand up for you if you told them?”

Angie ran her tongue over her teeth as she thought. “Maybe. I like to think they would, but,” she shrugged, “you never know.”

Angie moved closer to Peggy. “What about you? You don't seem real worried about this, even though you took forever to tell me.”

Peggy had sort of hoped Angie wouldn't bring it up, but it was inevitable. It was another part of this Peggy had not thought enough about. Her reasoning was that maybe she didn't need to. Maybe it was what it was.

“I love you, Angie. I think that's all it is,” she said simply. “It is what it is.”

Angie seemed to consider this, but she looked a little confused.

“You've been in love before though, right?”

“Yes.” Peggy nodded. “I was engaged, then in love.”

“You didn't love the guy you were engaged to?” Angie asked, looking more confused.

“I loved him, but I wasn't in love. Steve was the first man, first person, I loved.”

“And I'm the first girl, but second person,” Angie said neutrally.

“That isn't a bad thing. People fall out of love, or things happen we can't control, and life goes on,” Peggy said. She wasn't sure if this was the best thing to say because Angie looked mildly distressed. “Angie.”

“No, no,” Angie said quickly, but her hands flew to her eyes. “It's fine.”

“Angie,” Peggy said again, trying to pull Angie into a hug, but she was stiff.

“I don't know why I'm reacting like this,” Angie mumbled into the crook of her arm as she wiped her nose. “I guess because I've never really been in love before so it just weirds me out that you've been with other people. With men.” Peggy opened her mouth, but Angie quickly added, “but I'll get over it!”

“I don't want you to have to 'get over' something. It's understandable for you to feel like that.”

Angie tilted her head and smiled. “You're too sweet.”

She finally let Peggy hug her and held her tightly. They stayed like that for a couple minutes and Peggy had no complaints. It was a lazy weekend and Angie had taken both days off, so they could take some time to discuss everything they needed to discuss.

Sex was another thing that needed to be discussed, but had not been yet. Peggy figured the non-sexual talk was more important. Still, it was coming, she knew.

“So,” Angie started, breaking the hug, “are we gonna' talk about the elephant in the room?”

“Pardon?”

“Is there a relationship developing between us and if there is... what is the nature of our relationship?”

The measured, affected way Angie was speaking was surprising. Her usual Brooklyn accent was downplayed.

“You're asking if it is sexual or not?” Peggy asked.

Angie nodded, her bottom lip pulled into her mouth. So here was the discussion. Naturally, Peggy's admission to Angie would develop to a possible relationship and that would possibly involve sex. She had expected as much. Fortunately she had thought about it.

“Well, what do you want?” She asked.

Angie rolled her eyes, but laughed at the same time. “Why do you like redirecting the question back to me?”

“Angie,” Peggy took Angie's hands and pressed them to her lips, “I'm not redirecting. I genuinely want to know what you want in this relationship. I will go with what you want.”

Angie narrowed her eyes. “I guess,” she pursed her lips. Her mouth did a variety of other movements before she said, “I like the idea of being a sexual relationship.”

After she said that, Angie's eyes went out of focus and her eyebrows went up as far as they could go.

“Angie, are you alright?” Peggy asked, mildly alarmed. “You look like you're having a stroke.”

Angie pulled her hands away from Peggy and covered her face. Her ears had turned red. Peggy was still very confused; this seemed like a very odd reaction.

“It's weird to say that out loud,” Angie mumbled. “Maybe I shouldn't've. Maybe I should take it...” 

Angie stopped and swallowed. “I don't want to ruin our friendship.”

“Angie, Angie,” Peggy laughed, grabbing Angie's right hand. “It's really fine. What changed suddenly?”

“I know you said you loved me and I love you, too, but sex is a whole 'nother thing.”

“But, you brought it up, Angie,” Peggy pointed out.

“I know, I know, but until I said it out loud I didn't notice how big a deal it might be. And I thought you'd be the one to panic like this, but it's me,” Angie said in one breath. She exhaled sharply when she stopped.

“Angie.”

Angie closed her eyes and took a few slow breaths. Peggy placed her hand on Angie's face and gently stroked her cheek with her fingertips.

“Angie, this won't ruin our relationship, no matter what happens between us,” Peggy told her. “Whatever our relationship entails.”

Angie had been staring down while Peggy spoke to her, but when Peggy stopped, her eyes shot up. Her face was unreadable before she surged forward and kissed Peggy. Peggy was briefly surprised, but she recovered quickly. Angie pulled back, smiled sheepishly, and her fingers through her curly hair.

“Sorry.”

“Don't be sorry,” Peggy whispered. It was her turn to kiss Angie and she did so with more vigor, less hesitation than Angie. Angie's kiss was good, great even, but it was rather chaste, like she was testing the waters. Peggy's was more bold, her tongue swiping over Angie's bottom lip, then carefully sliding into her mouth. She felt Angie's tongue gently tap hers before Angie pulled back.

“Jesus,” Angie muttered, her face flushed. “Makes me wish I had kissed you sooner.”

“Me as well,” Peggy said with a grin.

Angie fell forward and rested her forehead against Peggy's. Peggy couldn't see Angie's mouth, but she could feel the vibrations of, and hear, Angie's laugh. Peggy's heart skipped. 

“I love you so much,” Angie whispered. “It feels amazing to say that.”

“How long have you been wanting to say that?”

“Since I met you,” Angie said without a pause. She pressed the tip of her nose against Peggy's nose. 

“Angie,” Peggy said, pulling back slightly. “I'm sorry it took so long for me to say it. It took me too long to realize it. I feel like I wasted too much time being a moron.”

“You're not a moron, Pegs,” Angie reassured. “Sometimes it's a hard thing to notice if it's right in front of you.”

Peggy smiled and kissed Angie again. Each kiss felt utterly familiar, but at the same time, completely new. It felt comfortable, like she should have been doing it since the beginning. When they broke apart, Angie hugged Peggy tightly. They stayed like that until Angie's stomach rumbled. 

“I guess it's dinnertime,” Peggy chuckled. “There's leftover spaghetti.”

“I'll put it on the stove,” Angie said, scrambling to her feet. When she left the room, Peggy sat quietly on the bed for a little bit, collecting her thoughts. She was happy—very happy, happier than she had been for awhile—but there was a slight twinge in her stomach. Was she nervous? What was she nervous about? Angie was a wonderful person, she was sweet, kind, knew exactly how to make Peggy feel good. Peggy had no reason to be nervous.

Except, same-sex relationships were very much looked down upon in society. Both she and Angie could get into a lot of trouble; they could lose their jobs, Angie may never be hired as an actress, they could be shunned by a number of social circles, or worse. That is plenty to be nervous about.

But they she thought about the fact she was Peggy Carter. She built her reputation on not caring what other people thought, this included her relationships. She had dealt with more things—awful things—than most people had in their lives than she had in her 26 years. She could deal with this. She could do this.

She realized she was nodding as she thought about this. She could smell spaghetti so she made her way to the kitchen. The sight in front of her made her stop.

Angie Martinelli, wearing an apron and humming as she stirred the pot on the stove. Her back was to Peggy so her humming moved into full-out singing. Her hips swayed as she belted out her song, then ended it by spinning on her toes and facing Peggy. Judging by the wide grin she flashed at Peggy, she wasn't embarrassed at all.

“Dinner's ready,” she sing-songed. “Sit, sit.”

Peggy did as she was told and sat the kitchen table, while Angie bounced over, giving Peggy her plate and sitting down with her own. 

“Dig in.”

Peggy took a bite and sighed. Angie was such a good cook, even when it was left over. Before she knew it, she was shoveling the food into her mouth.

“Easy, English,” Angie laughed, reaching over with a napkin, wiping Peggy's face. “You eat like my oldest brother. He once ate a pizza pie in less than five minutes. He threw up.”

Peggy made a face. “Thank you for that story while I was eating.”

Angie laughed. “Sorry.”

“My mother used to say a lady won't find a man if she eats more than him,” Peggy said, taking another bite.

Angie scoffed loudly. “I love that you have a big appetite. Makes me wonder if you have a big appetite for other things.”

Peggy was mid-bite and was left gaping at Angie. Angie seemed to realize what she said a second later and her eyes went wide.

“I'm so sorry, it just came out,” Angie mumbled, taking a large bite of spaghetti.

Peggy cleared her throat and chuckled. “No, it's fine.”

They talked about their family some more while they finished eating. Angie's sexual innuendo wasn't brought up. At least it wasn't brought up until they were heading to bed. When they got to hallway, they stopped. Neither were sure where to go.

“So,” Angie pointed at her door, then Peggy's, “uh, you can come into my room, if you want? Or you wanna' go to your room? Separately would be okay, if you want. We don't have to go into our rooms together. We can--”

Peggy put her hand on Angie's shoulder to stop her; she sounded like she was in an endless loop. “Let's go to your room. Your bed is very comfortable.”

Their beds pretty much felt the same, honestly, but this made Angie smile. Peggy went into the room first and she heard Angie gently shut the door behind them. When she turned, Angie was leaning against the door and watching Peggy. When their eyes met, a warm smile spread across Angie's face.

Peggy's heart was starting to pound now. That nervous knot in her stomach was returning, but she also felt... a warmth in her chest, a warmth that was traveling up her neck to the back of her skull. She finally stepped forward, towards Angie, and kissed her without another pause. Her hands rested on either side of Angie's face, while Angie's hands held onto the crook of Peggy's arms. Angie's hands slid up Peggy's arms, rested briefly on her shoulders, and moved one hand into Peggy's hair.

They broke apart to breathe and Peggy was struck by post-kiss Angie, the way she panted, her flushed cheeks. Peggy felt like a pervert the way she was staring at Angie; hungry, almost. The thing she had been telling herself about her being above those animalistic instincts? Utter nonsense. Because having Angie in front of her like this was bringing up something completely primal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for ending it like this. We'll see how the next chapter goes!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do they have sex in this? Maybe. : )
> 
> I don't know if I'll bump up the rating.

This was a moment Peggy had been thinking about a lot for the past week, she had built it up in her head so much, and the fear it wouldn't be somehow less than what she imagined was nagging at her. But when she actually kissed the golden-haired woman in front of, she quickly pushed that worry out of her head.

Angie was rapidly becoming more bold in her actions and was starting to travel down Peggy's neck. Peggy decided to try a move she had seen in movies, but seemed odd to try on a man. She stooped down, picked up Angie's legs—while Angie held onto Peggy's shoulders and pressed her back to the door—and used her hips to hold Angie's legs around her. Even more impressive was Angie never broke contact from Peggy's neck. Angie hooked her ankles around behind Peggy's back and ran her tongue up the underside of Peggy's chin.

“Pretty impressive, English,” Angie whispered. Her usual rather high-pitched voice was husky, with a slight rasp to it.

“I'm not finished yet, my dear.”

Peggy kissed Angie just as she turned and carried Angie towards the bed. Lips still moving together, Peggy carefully laid Angie down on the bed, her fingers finding the buttons on Angie's blouse and deftly working to undo them. Working blindly, as her eyes were closed and her mouth was occupied, Peggy had to use her sense of touch to figure it out.

Angie's hands were sliding up Peggy's back and under her shirt, finding the clasp of her bra and undoing with one quick motion. Peggy pulled her head back.

“How'd you do that?”

Angie scoffed. “Please, English, like I don't have moves, too.”

“Even more impressive would be to remove the bra from under my shirt.”

“I'm not a superhero, Pegs. I have my weaknesses.”

Peggy laughed, kissed Angie again, and looked down at Angie's blouse to see what progress she had made. Undoing two more buttons, she pulled Angie's shirt open and found Angie was braless. She looked at Angie inquisitively.

“Why would I wear a bra? Not like I was gonna go anywhere today.”

Peggy couldn't argue with that logic, so she ran a finger down between Angie's breasts and rested her hand on Angie's flat stomach. She heard Angie's breath hitch slightly. She glanced down at Angie's slacks, noting they were still on and her hand was just inches away from that area. When she met Angie's eyes, it was clear Angie had the same thing in mind.

“Too many clothes,” Angie said, reaching up to undo Peggy's shirt buttons. She was faster than Peggy and had her shirt open in about five seconds. Peggy helped Angie by shrugging the shirt down her arms, letting it fall behind her. Angie hooked her fingers on Peggy's bra straps and pulled it off. When she did, Angie's eyes became completely transfixed. Normally when people stared at Peggy's breasts like that—even when she was wearing clothes—she felt uncomfortable, angry almost. But Angie's gaze was completely nonthreatening. Despite the sexual nature of it all, it almost seemed innocent the way she stared.

“Can I?” Angie asked, her hands twitching slightly.

“Of course,” Peggy said softly.

Angie's hands first rested on Peggy's stomach. It wasn't lithe like Angie's, but it was relatively flat and muscled, with some soft areas. Angie gently pressed her thumbs into the abdomen muscles, examining them.

“Jeez, English, it's like a brick wall. How'd I not break my hand when I punched you?”

Peggy laughed. “Momentum, I suppose. It took a couple years of hard training to turn that fat into muscle.”

“I can't imagine you fat.”

“It was mostly baby fat I had trouble getting rid of, plus a naturally curvy body.”

“I love your curvy body,” Angie said, with the most serious face she could muster. Her hands started traveling up Peggy stomach until her palms came up the underside of Peggy's breasts and slid over the front. Peggy watched Angie's face; she had never seen her concentrate so hard.

When Angie reached the top of Peggy's breasts she sat up and followed the same track her hands had gone, only with her tongue. She stayed in one spot for longer this time, her tongue swirling around the edge of Peggy's nipple, before moving over to the other one. Peggy had continued to watch Angie for a brief period before she closed her eyes on instinct and shivered. Eyes still closed, and Angie's tongue still doing its work, she also felt long, nimble working the button on her slacks. She shifted her hips to help Angie, as she expected Angie to try to take her pants off at this point. She didn't.

Instead, she slipped her hand into the front of Peggy's pants. The two women locked eyes and Angie smirked. That smirk alone was almost enough for Peggy. Almost.

Angie knew exactly what she was doing. Her fingers dipped into and circled around the right places. And she was making sure she was doing it right because she was watching Peggy's face very closely. Peggy was trying to keep the eye contact, but when Angie added her other hand, Peggy couldn't control her eyes from rolling back into her head. She also couldn't control moan that rose up out of her, or the fact that she was now thrusting against Angie's hands.

Suddenly her pants were too hot and restrictive.

“Off. They need to be off,” she gasped. She sat up and quickly pulled the pants down her thighs. Angie, unfortunately, had to remove one of her hands to help Peggy get them completely off. But as soon as they were off, as well as Peggy's undergarments, she went back to work. 

Peggy almost complained when she felt Angie remove a hand again, until she saw why. Angie slipped her hand into her own pants and used the same motions she was using on Peggy on herself.

“I should... do that for you, Angie,” Peggy said breathily.

Angie shook her head, a blush rising in her cheeks. “You'll have plenty of time to do that later, English. Right now this is what I wanna' do.”

Peggy almost protested more, but Angie fingers were masterful, and she had to close her eyes while she rode Angie's hand. She heard a gentle gasp from Angie and it almost put her over the edge.

She bent forward and placed a number of kisses on Angie's stomach, up between her breasts, her chest, and up her neck. Angie had suddenly picked up her speed and Peggy was so, so close, and right before it happened, her hips picked up their speed as well and she bit into Angie's neck. Angie moaned softly and Peggy cried out, loudly. Her thrusting stopped and her body briefly went rigid, before she collapsed onto Angie. While her body pulsed with sexual energy, Angie kissed her on the cheek.

“How was that, English?” She asked, a slight smugness in her tone. She deserved that smugness.

“Good,” was all Peggy could say. It took her a minute to remember something. “But I'm not forgetting about you.”

Angie's hand was still between her own legs, and while Peggy didn't remove it, Peggy slid her own hand over Angie's. They used both, working together. It didn't take Angie long at all. In a matter of minutes her unused hand was gripping Peggy's back and Peggy could feel Angie's legs try to rise, despite the fact Peggy was sitting on them. Angie's orgasm seemed to last longer than Peggy's and when it finally wore down, Angie was in a daze.

A smile spread across her face and she placed her hand on Peggy's cheek.

“Good?” Peggy asked.

Angie just nodded.

Peggy rolled off Angie and wrapped her arms around her. This was the moment. The moment Peggy Carter had been both thinking about and denying herself. She felt a twinge of anger at herself for being so scared, that she would let that stop her from having this amazing moment with this woman.

Peggy loosened her hold on Angie just enough so Angie could move back. When she did, Angie gazed at her in a way that almost made Peggy cry. There were only a handful of people that looked at her like that, with so much love, like they would do anything for her. Angie's hand brushed at a stray hair on Peggy's face.

“I'm so happy,” Angie said in a choked, but happy, voice.

“As am I.”

“That was better than I imagined. Much better. And even better than humping a pillow.”

Peggy laughed loudly, engulfed Angie into her arms, and kissed her.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Random note: Lyndsy Fonseca somewhat passive aggressively tweeting/Instagramming about #cartinelli gave me life.
> 
> #BringBackAngie

After spending a nice, relaxing time cuddling in each others arms, listening to each other breathe, Peggy and Angie decided a second round was inevitable, quickly followed by a third round. Peggy had to end it when she found herself almost spasming from every touch from Angie.

“That was wonderful, darling, but I need a rest,” Peggy gasped, brushing sweaty hair from Angie's face, who was resting her chin on Peggy's stomach.

“I think the third time was the best.”

“I agree.”

Peggy closed her eyes and focused on gentle pulsing of her body. She had not been this relaxed in a while, and it certainly beat when she had to do it herself.

“Pegs,” Angie whispered. “Peggy.”

Peggy opened her eyes with some difficulty, but Angie was using her serious voice.

“What is it, dear?”

“Was that your first time with a woman?” Angie's eyes were cast forward, not looking into Peggy's.

“It was,” Peggy answered. “Was it for you?”

Angie bit her bottom lip and Peggy could guess her answer. “No.”

Peggy sat up more so she could get a better look at Angie's face. “Who? When?”

“You're not mad?”

“Not at all. We both have our own history. So, who was it?”

Angie sat up and ran circles with her finger on the bedspread. “Her name was Alice, I was eighteen. She was also an aspiring actress. She had the greenest eyes I ever saw and she could dance better than anyone I knew. We were at a party one night, we had too much to drink, and, well, you can guess what happened. She swore she never did it with a girl before, but jeez...”

Angie exhaled sharply. “She knew what she was doing.”

Peggy did feel a little twinge jealousy, but it passed quickly. “What happened after that?”

“She pretended it didn't happened and we never talked it about it again. Last I heard she's married. So how was your first time with a girl?”

Peggy smirked. “You definitely knew what you were doing. That thing you did with your tongue was... inspired.”

Angie looked pretty proud of herself. “Thank you.”

Then, a thought came to Peggy. “Oh, you weren't my first girl.”

Angie's eyes darted to meet Peggy's so fast they looked like they would pop out. “What?”

“A kiss, I mean. I kissed a girl, a woman, before. Dottie Underwood.”

“Iowa? The one who was actually a Russian assassin?”

When Peggy had told Angie about that, Angie didn't believe her and laughed. It took a little while for Angie to process that. Once she did, she wanted to ask Peggy too many questions. Peggy had left out a number of things, the kiss being one of them.

“Yes. She stole a lipstick I have that contains a mild poison that knocks someone unconscious. I was leaving, she said goodbye to me, then she grabbed me and kissed me. The last thing I remember was feeling overwhelmingly dizzy and that I couldn't keep my eyes open. Then she was standing over me before I passed out.”

“What was the kiss like?”

Peggy scoff-laughed. “That's what you take away from this? The kiss. I just remember being very confused; why was she kissing me? It wasn't a bad kiss, I suppose, before I realized what was really happening.”

Angie was nodding, but she didn't say anything. 

“You're not jealous, are you?” Peggy asked.

“Dottie is a gorgeous girl.”

“Perhaps, but she was also absolutely mental. Angie,” Peggy placed her hand on Angie's leg and stared right into her blue eyes. “Dottie Underwood has never, nor will she ever, mean anything to me. I'd honestly kill her if I could. Remember that giant bruise on my back? She did that to me. With a baseball bat.”

Angie shook her head. “You're right, Pegs, I'm being silly. I'm not used to this.”

Peggy kissed Angie on the cheek. “Love can be hard.”

“It'll get easier?” Angie asked hopefully.

Peggy gently patted Angie's leg, pursed her lips, and gave a non-committal grunt. “I don't know.”

When she looked back into Angie's eyes, Angie didn't seem offended or bothered by Peggy's answer. Instead, she smiled her sweet smile and took hold of the hand on her leg. “Again, thanks for being honest.”

They curled up into each others arms again and Angie fell asleep shortly after that. Peggy lied there for a while, listening to Angie's soft snores. She wanted to stay there, but she remembered she had some paperwork to do. It took some difficulty to get up, as Angie was lying on Peggy's arm. When she did, she covered Angie with the sheet, kissed her forehead, then pulled on a robe. She decided to work in the living room, so she wouldn't wake Angie. She didn't get as much work done as she would have liked, as she was pretty exhausted from her and Angie's activities. She ended up falling asleep on the couch, papers strewn across her stomach. 

She was awakened to someone nudging her arm, followed by a male voice with an English accent.

“Miss Carter, Miss Carter.”

Peggy, always quick to wake up, jerked upright, reaching for the gun that was not at her hip. When she adjusted and realized it was Edwin Jarvis, she relaxed. 

“For Heaven's sake, Mister Jarvis,” she gasped, rubbing her eyes. “What are you doing here?”

“You said to meet me at nine at the diner, but you never showed up, Miss Carter. I was concerned.”

“What time is it?”

“It's nearly ten thirty.”

Peggy nearly sprang to her feet, but remembered she was naked under her robe, so she stood up slowly. “I had no idea it was so late.”

“I never knew you slept in, Miss Carter,” Jarvis said, looking somewhat amused.

“I don't make a habit of it.” Peggy smoothed out her hair. “Would you like some tea?”

“If you don't mind.”

Peggy moved into the kitchen, which looked right into the living room. As she made the tea, she hoped it wasn't too obvious what she had been up to. Jarvis was usually pretty good at using his discretion, so she wasn't too concerned. Until about a minute later, as she walked back into the living room with the tea. At the same time, Angie walked into the room. She was not wearing a robe.

“I was confused when I woke up and you weren't there, English. But then I smelled the tea--”

She and Jarvis made eye contact. Peggy looked between the two of them. Nobody said anything. Angie, then, promptly turned, and left the room. She didn't even try to cover herself and Peggy assumed that was out of shock.

Jarvis turned to Peggy, his mouth slightly agape.

“Your tea, Mister Jarvis,” Peggy said as calmly as she could, handing Jarvis his tea. He took it, stared into the cup, then looked back at Peggy. 

“Isn't Angie silly?” Peggy asked, taking a sip of her own tea. She couldn't look at Jarvis.

“Miss Martinelli was, um...”

“Naked, yes. She apparently sleeps naked.”

She could feel Jarvis' eyes on her, but she ignored it. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Jarvis cleared his throat. “My wife and I are joining Mister Stark in Los Angeles.”

Peggy finally looked at Jarvis. “You're going to California?”

“Yes. Mister Stark plans on spending most of his time at his home in Los Angeles and, of course, he wants me there. Ana and I are to live with him.”

“For how long?”

“I'm not sure. Of course Mister Stark wouldn't give me a straight answer. Ana prefers colder weather, so perhaps not too long.”

“Hm.” Peggy sipped at her tea again, her eyes cast downward. 

“Mister Stark also said you're welcome to come.”

“Oh, Mister Jarvis, I'm not sure...”

“I've been hearing a rumor, involving the SSR,” Jarvis mumbled cryptically into his tea.

Peggy's ears perked up and she looked at Jarvis. “Oh?”

“I'm not really in a place to say. Mister Stark heard some things, but if you have not heard anything, then perhaps I shouldn't say anything.”

“Mister Jarvis,” Peggy said sternly.

He looked at her uncomfortably, briefly. “There is a branch of the SSR opening in Los Angeles.”

“And the New York branch?”

“As far as I know, will continue to operate. But pretend I didn't say anything. Mum's the word.”

Peggy made a zipping motion against her lips. “I will miss you, Mister Jarvis.”

“And I you, Miss Carter. Unless you decide to come, too.”

“Yes, well, that would be something to think about.”

“Perhaps Miss Martinelli would like to come. Maybe she would want to be a Hollywood actress.”

Peggy's eyes drifted over to the hallway where the bedrooms were. She wondered what Angie was doing right now. Probably hiding in her bedroom.

“I don't know what you thought you saw, Mister Jarvis. Other than her nudity,” Peggy added when she turned back and saw Jarvis open his mouth.

“It is none of my business, Miss Carter. Your private life is just that; private,” Jarvis said simply.

Peggy's fingers tapped the side of her teacup. She almost wanted to say something, but needed to talk to Angie first. “I appreciate that.”

“Just be careful.”

Peggy smiled at this. “Aren't I always?”

After Jarvis left, Peggy immediately went to Angie's room. Just as she thought, Angie was under her covers, reading a script. 

“I'm sorry about,” Peggy said, sitting on the bed.

“I shoulda' checked. Ma always said I had no common sense,” Angie mumbled, shaking her head.

Peggy chuckled. “I've heard the same about me.”

“What'd Mister Fancy say?”

“Nothing. He has no interest in delving into my personal life. I trust he will use his discretion.”

Angie seemed satisfied with that. “Still, I was naked in front of him. Was it awkward?”

“It was. But Mister Jarvis is often a little bit awkward,” Peggy said with a smile. “But I wouldn't worry. He's happily married, so I don't think he's having any unsavory thoughts about you.”

Angie nodded. “So what'd he have to say?”

“He's going to Los Angeles with his wife. Howard Stark wants him there.”

“Oh. I'm sorry,” Angie didn't sound very sorry. “I know you two are close.”

“He goes where Howard wants him.”

“I hear LA is nice,” Angie said absently.

Peggy swallowed. The thing Jarvis told her about the SSR rang in her head. If it was true, she may have to go to Los Angeles. If she did go, it would be cruel to not take Angie. But, it may also be cruel to bring her. What if her assignments were even more dangerous on the West Coast? 

“Hey, English, you okay?” Angie asked, peering at Peggy. “Have you been to California before?”

Peggy smiled gently. “I have not.”

“We should go sometime. You know, when you actually have nice off.”

“I would like that,” she said gently.

Angie grinned and slid off the bed. “Why don't I make some breakfast?”

“That sounds wonderful.”

Before Angie went out the door, she stopped. “He's gone, right? 'Cause I don't want to put on a robe.”

“Yes, he's gone, Angie.”

Angie nodded, then walked out of the room, but not before making a show of showing her butt. Peggy knew she was doing this on purpose because Angie briefly turned and smirked at Peggy.

Peggy realized she had some new things to consider involving Angie Martinelli (and California). Love really was hard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate lack of communication as a plot device, so Peggy will talk to Angie soon, I promise.
> 
> Also, there wasn't enough awkwardness, so I brought in Jarvis.


	8. Chapter 8

It turned out Jarvis' rumor about the SSR was true. A week later Daniel Sousa approached her about the move to Los Angeles and that he would be running the new branch.

“We have a building that will act as an acting agency. We'd love for you to join us,” he said. “There's a potential big case, and I think you would be great for it.”

The fact that they were using an acting agency as a cover seemed appropriate, but also cruel. Like the universe was punishing her for not telling Angie about the move yet. “It is a big decision, Agent Sousa.”

“I know, Peggy, but I think it would be a big opportunity for you. The West Coast seems like a more open-minded place.”

Peggy hummed thoughtfully. The SSR was definitely much more welcoming to her, especially since she practically saved them all. But Jack Thompson still worked there and was still a jackass towards her.

“I will have to think about,” she said after a brief silence. “My whole life is here.”

Daniel nodded. “I understand.”

He went back to his desk, leaving Peggy to her thoughts. She strummed her fingers on the surface of the desk. Angie was good at sensing when Peggy had something on her mind and this was no different. She was constantly trying to get a good look at Peggy's face, because as good as Peggy was at lying when she was undercover, she was not good at lying to Angie. Something about those gentle blue eyes, and the fact they had been intimate, made it very difficult. She knew she had to say something, but she didn't know what that something would be.

When she came home later that evening, she walked into the apartment to smell an Italian dish. She walked into dining room, where Angie had laid out plates and silverware, and was just placing a casserole dish in the middle of the table.

“Oh, Pegs, just in time! I made lasagna.”

“It smells delicious, Angie. I'm famished.”

They both sat down, but first, as always, Angie wanted to say grace. Angie closed her eyes and folded her hands, while Peggy copied her.

“Dear Lord, thank you for the food that will nourish out bodies, thank you for our health, and thank you for my wonderful roommate, Peggy. In your name, we say Amen.”

“Amen,” Peggy repeated. “That was lovely.”

“Sorry we have to do that. Old habits die hard. Catholic guilt, ya' know? Well, you don't know. Let's eat.”

Peggy chuckled before taking a bite into her lasagna. “Oh my goodness, Angie, this is Heaven.”

“Thanks, English. My nonna's old recipe. She taught me how to make it when I was twelve.”

Peggy took another bite and almost moaned. “I wish I could cook like you. Or cook.”

“Well, you need to save something I can be good at. You're too good at everything else.”

“I can make toast.”

“True. Best toast-maker I've ever met. What'd you do before you had me for a roommate?”

“A lot of take-out. I know. My eating habits weren't the best,” Peggy added when Angie gave her a sympathetic look. “But now I have you.”

“What would you do without me?” Angie asked rhetorically, a sweet smile on her face.

Peggy felt a twinge in her chest. What would she do without Angie? She may find that out soon enough.

“Angie,” she started. She put her fork down and clasped her hands in front of her.

Angie was mid bite, but when she saw Peggy's posture, she also put her fork down. “What is it, Pegs?”

“I need to talk to you about something. The SSR is moving to Los Angeles. Well, a portion of it. Agent Sousa asked me if I wanted to go.”

“What'd you say?” Angie's voice was uncharacteristically quiet.

“I said I would think about it. I wanted to see how you felt about it.”

Angie leaned back in her chair and stared at the half-eaten lasagna in front of her. “It sounds like a good opportunity.”

“That's what Daniel said.”

Peggy couldn't read Angie's face, it was too neutral. She had to read the most subtle of quirks in Angie's expression. Angie licked her lips and her nostrils were flared.

“Angie, I am going to be honest with you. I was having trouble deciding if I should bring you along. But because I don't want you with me, I absolutely do, but it could be dangerous, for a number of reasons.”

Angie looked at Peggy, her jaw clenched slightly. “What did you decide, then?”

“I still haven't decided. But I needed to tell you.”

“How long would you be there?”

“I don't know. Agent Sousa said there are strange things happening and he believes I am the right one for the case.”

Angie picked up her fork and took a bite. Peggy took that as a good sign.

“I really do want you to come, but your family is here, your job,” Peggy continued.

“You're scared what it'd look like if you brought me along,” Angie said plainly, talking into her fork.

Peggy was silent at this. Angie was always surprising Peggy with her ability at perception. Peggy hadn't considered this, and she didn't know why. It seemed like an obvious thing. 

“Bringing your roommate on a long trip across the country looks pretty suspicious,” Angie said. She didn't look angry.

“Perhaps. But I'm sure it's not that uncommon.”

Angie looked at Peggy incredulously. “Didn't you say people are always tryin' to find ways to pick you apart?”

“Yes... I did.”

“This would be one of those things. It's a scandalous thing. Unmarried woman in her mid-twenties, bringing her 'roommate.'” Angie air-quoted “roommate.” “People aren't stupid.”

Peggy realized she had started picking her lasagna apart. “You're too smart for your own good, Angie.”

Angie smiled tightly. “That's what Ma always said. Got a smart-mouth, she'd say.” 

Peggy rose from her seat and knelt beside Angie. “Angie, look, I don't care what people say. I want you there.”

“I don't want you getting in trouble.”

“I don't care what people say,” Peggy repeated, with more force this time. “If they give us a hard time, they can answer to me.”

“Peggy,” Angie said softly, taking Peggy's hand. “There's something I need to tell you, too.”

Peggy must have looked panicked because Angie squeezed Peggy's hand and smiled. “It's a good thing. I got a part in a musical. A lead.”

Angie was beaming now and Peggy realized she was too. “Oh, Angie, that is fantastic!”

“Yeah, I know! I get to sing and dance!”

Peggy threw her arms around Angie and hugged her tightly. Then she kissed Angie's cheek before planting a hard kiss onto Angie's lips. She broke apart from Angie with a loud 'mwah.' As she gazed into Angie's eyes, a thought occurred to her.

“Wait, so if you have this part, then you wouldn't be able to go to California,” Peggy said slowly.

Angie's smile dropped. “Yeah.”

“Then... I won't go. I can't leave you.”

Angie shook her head, her curls bouncing. “Pegs, no. I'd feel like shit if I was the reason you had to stay here.”

“But what if I want to stay here?”

A calm, almost serene, expression came over Angie's face. She brushed the hair from Peggy's face.

“English. Peggy, would you honestly stay here for me? Risk your job? Turn down this big opportunity? I know you love me, but I'm not sure the Peggy Carter I know would risk the job she worked so hard in, just for love.”

“It isn't 'just' love, Angie. It's you,” Peggy said. She felt her voice tremble, so she stopped talking. Unfortunately, Angie was right. The last thing she wanted to be was resentful towards Angie.

“You still got time to think about it, right? You got a big heart, Peggy, but you also got a big brain.” Angie tapped Peggy on the forehead. “Think with that, not your big heart. Also, don't think with other parts of your body.”

When Angie not to subtly pointed between Peggy's legs, Peggy laughed. “Alright, Angie, I'll think about it.”

Angie leaned up and kissed Peggy, slowly. After she pulled away, Peggy went back to her seat to finish her dinner.

“So, what's this musical you're in?”

“It's another new one, but it looks amazing. Oh, and the character I'm playing? Her name is Peggy.”

Despite the fact she had lasagna in her mouth, Peggy laughed. “I hope this isn't another Captain America play.”

Angie shook her head. “I checked. It's not. No, Peggy Anderson is a sweet girl from Indiana who moves to New York, to make it big, but has to become a secretary while she pays the bills. It might not sound so original, but the writing is top-notch.”

“No sex scenes?” Peggy asked nonchalantly. Or attempted to.

“No,” Angie chuckled. “I don't even kiss anyone. That's what's so refreshing about it. I meet a guy, but he isn't a romantic lead, he's just a pal. Isn't that great?”

“It is great.”

When they finished dinner, Peggy helped with the dishes, then they retired to bed. To Peggy's room. For the past week, Peggy didn't feel like she could be intimate with Angie because the guilt in her belly just ruined the mood for her. Now that she was spoken to Angie, that guilt was gone. However, there was a new, almost anxious feeling that had replaced it. There was yet another decision she had to make, and either way, it was going to change things.

They had both gotten good at removing each others clothes in a timely fashion, as to not waste time. One thing Peggy realized she liked to do was to stare at Angie, as perverted as that sounded. The first time she did this, Angie looked a little self-conscious. They had seen each other naked before, but it was while on bed and in the throes of passion. Simply standing in front of each other was another thing.

But that was the past, weeks ago, and now they had no problem staring at each others' naked bodies. That usually didn't last long, though, as, at least for Peggy, she couldn't stand to just stare at Angie and not do anything. Tonight was no exception.

Stepping forward, Peggy wrapped her arms around Angie's shoulders and kissed her. It was a slow, sweet kiss, but eventually gave way to something more passionate. Passion gave way to erotic when Angie bit Peggy's bottom lip and ran her tongue over her upper lip. Peggy broke the kiss to run her tongue along Angie's jaw, then her throat, nipping gently. She could feel Angie's soft hand gently kneading her breast while she was doing this.

Angie started to pull her towards the bed, but Peggy stopped her.

“No, I want to try something,” she whispered.

Angie cocked her head and Peggy lowered to her knees. The tip of her nose nudged at Angie, while Angie buried her finger into Peggy's hair. Peggy placed her hand on the small of Angie's back as she ran her tongue along the area where Angie's hips met her upper thigh, before her tongue finally met the place, she was sure, Angie wanted it the most. When Angie's fingers dug into her scalp, especially when she did a quick swipe with her tongue, she knew she was doing something right .

She kept up this movement with her tongue, alternating between different areas. She must have only been doing this for barely two minutes, but suddenly, Angie's moans grew louder until they became one long one and she pressed her hand against Peggy's skull, pushing her face into Angie's crotch.

“I need to sit down,” Angie mumbled after a moment, gently pushed Peggy away from her.

“That was quick,” Peggy couldn't help but point out.

After Angie sat down on the edge of the bed, she grinned. “Seeing you like that was too much. You're getting good with that tongue, English.”

Peggy shrugged, not really sure what to say. So she sat down next to Angie.

“Your turn?” Angie asked, but Peggy shook her head. 

“I'm okay for now, thank you.”

Something passed over Angie's face before she asked: “Promise me you'll actually consider going to L.A., 'kay?”

Angie wasn't looking at Peggy so Peggy had to lean down to get a good look at her face. Her eyebrows were scrunched and her chin was crinkled.

“Angie, I promise.”

“Because,” Angie looked at Peggy, “I don't want to be the reason you stay here. Ya' know, the only reason.”

“We've been over this.” Peggy put her hand on Angie's back and rubbed it. “Even if I decide to stay here, I highly doubt I could be angry at you for the decision I made.”

Angie chewed on her lip before taking a deep breath “But could you promise that? 'Cause, my brother had a girl who didn't go to a party 'cause he was in trouble and couldn't go, then she stayed home, but missed fun stuff, and then she was angry about it and didn't say anything for weeks, then they broke up.”

She exhaled sharply after finishing her long sentence, leaving Peggy to process that. When she did, she stopped the movement of her hand, but kept it on Angie's back. “If I truly am upset with you, which I doubt I would be, I will tell you. Honesty, right?”

Angie nodded, a small smile returning. “Honesty.”

“Now,” Peggy took Angie's hand and placed it onto her own thigh, “I believe it's my turn, correct?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Angie. I don't think she's quite gotten over the fact Peggy's in love with her, hence the insecurity.
> 
> Also, like I've said before, this is moving into some AU territory. I really try to not ignore canon, but sorry Sousa and Wilkes, Angie, in my opinion, is the better choice. And Cartinelli is very endearing to write.
> 
> Also, happy belated birthday to Hayley Atwell!


	9. Chapter 9

Peggy didn't sleep well that night, the night after her talk with Angie. She kept going back and forth between thinking about going to California or staying in New York. She kept thinking about how Angie would react. Angie had said she would be okay with her going to California, but Angie was sweet and wouldn't make Peggy stay here. Honesty seemed to be a big deal to Angie, but she could sometimes be a little passive aggressive, even if she didn't mean to be.

If Peggy left, Angie would be left alone. She had her family, but they didn't know about her lifestyle and Peggy probably knew the most about her. She didn't have anyone else to talk to, not like she talks to Peggy.

If she stayed, there would always that be hanging over her head. Always hanging over Angie's head. Peggy would never be actively resentful of Angie, but part of her wondered if Angie's concern was warranted. She had noticed more and more just how observant Angie was. She was an actress, she had to learn how to be observant and read people, read their emotions, mimic them.

She looked over at the sleeping Angie next to her. She smiled at the way Angie's arm was bent over her head and her mouth hung open. The idea of leaving Angie was awful. Being with Angie had become so comfortable, like home. Angie was like home. Peggy hadn't felt like this in a while.

Angie snorted in her sleep, rolled over, and wrapped her arms around Peggy. Peggy leaned down and kissed Angie on the forehead. Another somewhat creepy habit Peggy had picked up was both watching Angie fall asleep and watching her sleep. The way she fell asleep was adorable, in Peggy's opinion. Her eyebrows furrowed as her eyes fluttered closed and she sighed, and when she actually fell asleep, her face smoothed out and her mouth almost always dropped open. Peggy wondered if she furrowed her eyebrows like that because Peggy was staring at her.

Good things were happening for both of them, and Peggy was struggling to be happy about it.

Peggy finally fell asleep around two, and woke up six hours later. Angie was still out cold, so Peggy slipped out of bed and tried to make her some breakfast. The toast she made was fine, the eggs ended up burning, though. 

“Why do you always try to cook, English?” Angie asked, coming into the kitchen. “Accept there's something ya' can't do.”

“Have some toast, dear.” Peggy handed Angie a plate with three slices of toast.

Angie look a bite. “Still the best toast-maker.”

Peggy picked up a slice for herself. “What's the plan for today?”

“I was thinkin' a walk? In the park?”

Peggy chewed thoughtfully while Angie stared at her. 

“I won't hold your hand or anything,” Angie said before Peggy could answer and it nearly broke Peggy's heart to hear that.

“Oh, Angie...”

“No, no, it'd be risky for both of us. I'm not just doin' it for your benefit, Pegs.”

Peggy swallowed a large piece of mostly unchewed toast and cleared her throat. “Yes, a walk in the park sounds lovely.”

Angie got dressed before Peggy and looked pretty excited when Peggy met her at the door. She was rocking on her heels and grinning.

When Peggy looked at her questioningly, Angie said, “it's such a nice day.”

Peggy pulled her coat on. “And you want to walk with me.”

“That too,” Angie shrugged. She walked over to Peggy and fixed her collar, pecked Peggy on the lips and looped her arm with Peggy's.

“You're not worried about this?” Peggy asked, looking at their hooked arms.

“I think it'll be fine for a little bit. It looks platonic.”

It was a nice day, and Peggy could feel the warmth in her bones. She took a deep breath, inhaling the mildly-fresh air. She could hear Angie humming beside her.

“For once I'm not looking forward to going to work tomorrow,” Peggy said when they got close to the park.

“Oh, yeah? Miss Business doesn't wanna' work?”

“I've really enjoyed this weekend,” she said, looking into Angie's eyes. “I don't want it to end.”

Angie's mouth twisted and Peggy sensed Angie wanted to kiss her. Angie turned her head away sharply, but laughed softly. “Me too.”

The park was fairly busy, with families having picnics, children flying kites. Peggy and Angie settled onto a bench that allowed them to see most of what was happening in the park. Angie let go of Peggy's arm at that point.

“I can't wait for rehearsals to start. It will be so much fun.” Angie sighed wistfully.

“When do they start?” 

“Next week. It'll be some late nights.”

“When is the show?”

“June. So, two months.”

“It'll be wonderful. I can't wait to see it.”

When Angie looked at Peggy, Peggy felt a twinge in her chest. The way Angie was looking at her made her nervous.

“Will you be here then?” She meant if Peggy will still be in Los Angeles.

“Angie, I haven't really...”

“You haven't decided yet,” Angie finished.

“No. It's a big decision.”

Angie's hand twitched, then moved it towards Peggy's, but she put it back down.

“I need to know as soon as you decide, because I want to enjoy our time together as much as I can,” Angie said quietly. When she looked up at Peggy, there was a twinkle in her eye.

“Oh?”

“I'd make sure you'd really enjoy it,” Angie said in the straightest face with the calmest voice. She glanced over her shoulder, seemingly looking at nothing in particular.

“What would you do?” Peggy asked, trying to match Angie's nonchalance.

“You'll have to wait and find out. But, trust me,” Angie leaned in like she was telling Peggy a secret, “it'll be good.”

Peggy had to look away and make sure no one was looking at them, because even though they weren't doing anything, she felt they were doing something. No one even acknowledged them.

“Well, now I want to leave.”

The smile that appeared on Angie's face was tight and strange, and she didn't say anything.

“But I still haven't decided,” Peggy quickly added.

Angie sat upright and watched the things happening around them. Peggy watched Angie for a little bit. When she followed Angie's eyes, she saw she was staring at a family having a picnic.

“Peggy, remember when you asked me if I wanted kids? Do you want kids?”

Peggy was sort of caught off guard by this question and she was sure that was obvious by her expression. Angie was looking at her.

“Um, perhaps. When I was engaged, we had discussed it. Two boys and a girl, he said.”

“And you said?”

“I said, 'that sounds nice.'”

“So you don't want kids?”

Peggy shrugged. “I'm not opposed to children.”

“Your kids would look real cute,” Angie said, gently nudging Peggy's arm.

When Peggy looked at Angie, she was grinning. “Big, brown eyes, amazing smile,” Angie continued.

“Are you describing me or my children?”

“Both.”

“Hm. Well, you were also hesitant about children.”

“That was before...” she motioned between her and Peggy, “this.”

“You would make a wonderful mother. You're so patient, and sweet.”

Angie looked back at the picnicking family, a gentle smile on her face. The family had a toddler and a little boy of about four. They looked very happy. Peggy wouldn't mind children, she felt she was pretty good with them. But then she remembered she was with Angie, and how that would complicate things a lot. They obviously couldn't have natural children, and adoption would likely be very difficult.

“We'll figure it out,” Angie whispered, apparently reading Peggy's mind. She grasped Peggy's hand, squeezed it, and let go.

They sat like that for another twenty minutes, chatting about random things. They left when Angie said she was hungry, so they headed to a cafe for lunch. It was quiet, with only a few people scattered around the small establishment. They ordered, and settled in. 

“I've walked past this place a buncha' times, but I've never been in,” Angie noted, looking around. “It smells a little,” she added quietly.

Peggy sniffed. It was likely either cigarettes or some kind of drug. “Do you want to go somewhere else?”

“Nah, I'm already sitting. Besides, it's cozy.”

Peggy wanted to hold Angie's hand very badly and had to settle for holding her own hand. More like clenching her hands together. She had to settle for smiling at Angie, as warmly as she could. Angie seemed to understand because she matched the smile.

When their food was brought to them, Angie pulled the tomatoes from her club sandwich and gave them to Peggy.

“Shoulda' asked for this without them.”

“I don't understand, Angie. You eat Italian food all the time and it's mostly tomatoes, but you won't eat tomatoes.”

Angie had to giggle for a second. When Peggy frowned at her, she said, “'Tomahtoes.' You're so cute. But I don't like raw tom-AY-toes,” Angie exaggerated her pronouncement of the word, “cooked tomatoes in sauce are fine.”

Peggy shoved a piece of tomato into her mouth and Angie grimaced. “You're a funny girl, Angie.”

“What about you and brussel sprouts?”

“That's different. They smell horrid, taste horrid, and it does not matter if they are cooked or raw.”

Angie shrugged. “Fair enough.”

Peggy put Angie's discarded tomatoes onto her own sandwich and took a bite. It wasn't bad at all. The turkey was moist, the lettuce seemed fresh. She hummed in enjoyment. She was also careful about chewing with her mouth open, especially since Angie was watching her.

“You're so cute when you eat,” Angie said.

“Thank you?”

“Nah, I mean it. You look so happy when you eat. You hum, you smile, and you get this glazed over look in your eyes when the food's real good.”

“And I always do this?” Peggy asked, taking another bite, but a little more self-aware this time.

“When you're hungry, I guess. By the way,” Angie cleared her throat, clasped her hands together, and leaned forward, “you get a similar look on your face other times, too.”

Peggy didn't understand Angie's meaning and she tilted her head, but when Angie's eyebrows bounced up and down, and muttered a quiet, “oooh.”

“So I guess you do it when you're really enjoying something. Really enjoying it,” Angie bit into her sandwich and bounced her eyebrows again.

Peggy was about to say something, some clever remark, but she was cut off when she saw a familiar man walk in.

“Oh bloody Hell,” Peggy groaned.

“Marge!” Jack Thompson waved at her, gestured to the server, and leaned on the back of a chair at their table. 

“What're you doing here?” Peggy asked, trying to be cordial, but the way that question came out, sharply, it wasn't going well.

“I come here every Sunday for lunch.” He looked at Angie. “Hey, crying girl. Uh, Martinelli.”

“Angie,” Angie smiled, not particularly in a friendly way. “I don't know your name.”

“You can call me Jack.”

Angie nodded, not really looking like she cared. Her eyes flickered to Peggy and Peggy had to stifle a laugh.

“Is she your roommate, Carter?”

“Pardon?”

“You said you have a roommate, but you never said who it was.”

Peggy almost wanted to say “no” because it wasn't any of his business. But she nodded. “Yes, she is.”

“Did you decide about LA yet?”

Peggy clasped her hands together and rested her chin on them. “Are you trying to get rid of me, Jack?”

He smirked. “I think it'll be a good opportunity for you, Marge.”

“So I hear. Uh, Angie, are you ready to go?” Peggy asked. Angie was only halfway through her sandwich, but she caught Peggy's hint and nodded. “Sorry we can't stay, Jack, but we have a prior engagement.”

She and Angie stood at the same time. Peggy nodded at Jack. “I will see you tomorrow, Agent Thompson.”

“Nice to... see you again, John,” Angie said with a wide smile.

They both turned and left before Jack could correct her, and they laughed once they were sure they were out of earshot.

“I'm sorry about that, dear,” Peggy said, still laughing a little. “He has a habit of showing up at inopportune times.”

“Did you see his face when I called him John?” Angie giggled. “Guys hate it when girls do that.”

“I will have to remember that trick.”

It was nearly three when they got back to the apartment, so they took some tea out onto the terrace. Angie had her script and was reading her lines while Peggy read a book. Or, rather, Angie read her script and Peggy watched her read her script while pretending to read her book. Angie's face went through a wide range of expression while she read the script; she went from angry, sad, happy, excited, and angry again, all without speaking her lines aloud.

After a while, Peggy felt like she was going to fall asleep so she stood up and leaded on the railing of the terrace. When she turned around, Angie was still reading her script and looked completely into it, so Peggy didn't disturb her. In a life of utter chaos, it was nice to have a moment of reverie.

She became so transfixed by the sky, she didn't notice Angie behind her until she felt two skinny arms wrap around her waist.

“Finished reading,” Angie whispered, kissing Peggy's neck.

“Was that your first time reading it?”

“No, fifth time, I think, but it gets better and better. Now I'm done.” She sucked gently on the area beneath Peggy's ear. 

“Not here, we're outside,” Peggy chuckled. 

“Nobody'll see,” Angie whispered against Peggy's throat. “I've always wanted to do it outside.”

Peggy almost protested more, but Angie's hand had found its way under Peggy's skirt. She was hooking her fingers onto Peggy's pantyhose, as well as her underwear, and was tugging them both down far faster than Peggy could think of a plausible excuse to stop. Not that she really wanted to, at this point.

Her skirt was now hiked over her hips and Angie's head between her legs. She felt some paranoia about someone somehow seeing them, but that quickly melted away with Angie's skillful tongue and fingers. She had to brace herself against the railing, her eyes closed, knees buckling. Her chest started heaving before her body arched away from the railing and a loud moan tore out of her.

Angie put her hand on Peggy's lower back, steadying her, and slowly rose up in front of her. She kissed Peggy, deeply, and dug her fingers into Peggy's hair. When they broke apart, Angie rubbed the tip of her nose against Peggy's and grinned.

“Once again, you're welcome,” Angie mumbled.

Peggy just chuckled, resting her forehead against Angie's.

Then Angie said, “Marge.”

Peggy shuddered and pulled away Angie. She still smiled, though. “Don't ever call me that.”

“You don't like being called Marge?” Angie asked, trying to sound surprised. “What about Maggie? Maggie Carter.”

Peggy laughed. “I actually did get called Maggie when I was five or so, in primary school. It didn't stick.”

“It's cute. But I do like Peggy the best. It suits you.”

“It's Margaret when my mother was angry with me. Margaret Elizabeth.”

“Full name is always the worst,” Angie muttered. She squatted down for a moment to pull Peggy's pantyhose back up and fix her skirt. Peggy mumbled a 'thank you' before a thought occurred to her.

“I don't know your middle name.”

“Huh?”

Peggy was pretty sure Angie heard her, but she repeated herself anyway. “I don't know your middle name. You know mine.”

Angie walked away from Peggy and flopped down onto a chair. She didn't say anything for a little bit.

“Francesca Orsola,” Angie groaned, her eyes rolling.

Peggy sat next to Angie. “That's not so bad. Two middle names?”

“Francesca is my nonna's name, while my dad thought it would be funny to give me Orsola as another name.” When Peggy tilted her head, Angie sighed and continued. “It means 'little bear.' Apparently, when I was born, I looked like a baby bear. All curled up, growling.”

“Growling?”

“From what I was told, I had...stuff, nasty birth stuff, in my throat and it made me make a sound that sounded like growling.”

Peggy laughed softly, but Angie gave her a side-eyed look. “Oh, Angie, that's cute. Besides, it's just a middle name. And nobody would know that's what that means, unless you tell them. Otherwise, you're just Angie.”

“I was also hairy,” Angie practically whispered.

“Pardon?”

“I had a lot of hair on my head, like a full head of hair,” Angie said, turning her head to Peggy and gesturing around her skull.

Peggy put her hand on Angie's arm. “If it makes you feel better, I was completely bald. I didn't have hair until I was around eighteen months. My brother called me Cueball until I was seven.”

Angie laughed at this and Peggy smiled. 

“I bet you were a real cute baby, Pegs.”

“I would show you a picture, but they're back in England with my family. I try to avoid having too many personal things with me.”

“We can go to my parent's place sometime. My ma loves showing people pictures.”

Peggy leaned over and kissed Angie on the cheek. “I'd love that.”

A little bit later, Angie went into the kitchen to cook dinner, while Peggy took a nap on the couch. She fell asleep deeply enough to have some dreams. Most of it was nonsense, nothing Peggy would likely remember, but there was one, somewhat upsetting, part. She was being chased down a hallway, by someone she couldn't see, while up ahead she could hear a woman screaming. Angie. It seemed to take forever for Peggy to reach where the screams were coming from, but when she did, she was met with the sight of Angie lying on the ground in a pool of her own blood. There was a bullet wound in her forehead, just like Colleen. 

Peggy woke up shaking and sweating, and Angie was at her side, shaking her gently.

“Pegs, you okay? You were almost shouting in your sleep.” Angie placed a hand on Peggy's forehead. It felt cold against Peggy's skin.

“Yes... I'm fine.”

Peggy sat up slowly and rubbed her face with both hands, while Angie moved her hand to Peggy's upper arm, rubbing it gently. When Peggy finally actually looked at Angie, she felt sick, remembering that image from her dream.

“Are you gonna' be sick?” Angie asked. “Your face is really pale. Do you need a bucket?”

Peggy shook her head slightly. “No. Angie, I think we need to talk.”

Angie sat on the edge of the couch and stared at her intently.

“I think I should go to Los Angeles.” She stopped and waited to hear Angie's response. Angie's face was impassive, blank almost, and she was still staring at Peggy. “I think it would be good for both of us.”

Angie didn't respond right away. “Well, I see how it'd be good for you, but I don't know how it'd be good for me. Other than knowing you're happy,” Angie added.

Peggy wasn't sure she wanted to tell Angie it was because she was scared for her safety. This was her first relationship since joining the SSR, and while Angie was a decent fighter, she highly doubted Angie could hold her own against the kind of people who went after Peggy.

“Because I love you,” Peggy said, but Angie squinted her eyes. “I have to leave because I love you, and I don't want anything to happen to you.”

“Pegs, I'll be fine.”

“I told you about my roommate. She meant a lot to me, but you mean more. If something happened to you,” Peggy's voice cracked. She swallowed. “I wouldn't be able to handle it. I've lost too many people in my life.”

Angie looked like she was going to protest, but her mouth stayed firmly clamped shut.

“That's one reason I'm leaving. You were also right, this will be a good opportunity. I'm doing this for both of us.”

“But you'll be back, right?” Angie asked in a quiet voice. Peggy's heart broke.

“I hope to, yes.” It was a non-answer, and Angie seemed to sense this. She threw her arms around Peggy and hugged her tight.

“I love you so much, English.”

It felt like when Peggy was leaving when she was running from the SSR, when Angie saved her both from her fellow Agents (before Dottie Underwood messed that up) and saved her from falling off a ledge. They hugged like this that time, but so much had changed between them. Before they were friends with unspoken sexual tension, now, well, now it was more than Peggy could have imagined.

They stayed in that hug for a couple minutes. Peggy heard Angie sniff before she pulled away. Her eyes were puffy, but she smiled.

“Dinner's ready.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry :/
> 
> I decided to go ahead and let Peggy go to LA, but I'd like to add this story will steer away from Season 2 canon in some ways.


	10. Chapter 10

The day came much faster than Peggy wanted, but it was here. She was leaving for California in a few hours. The past few weeks were rough. Angie was, despite saying she was happy for Peggy, not herself. She was quieter. She also seemed to lack energy, but Peggy also assumed that was because of rehearsals, which had picked up recently. Peggy hoped that was the main reason for Angie's energy level because she hated the idea of making Angie feel that way.

But now that the day of her departure was here, they both made a point of being together as much as they possibly could. They woke up early, just holding each other. Love making was part of this, too, but it was mostly cuddling. Peggy was reminded of the soldiers in the war, who would talk about their last night with their girls. Peggy wasn't going off to war, but in her line of work, she never knew if she was going to come out alive. She had almost died too many times.

Angie went with Peggy to the airport, held her tightly, but didn't kiss her, at least on the lips. She kissed her on both cheeks, then started intensely into Peggy's eyes for a minute.

“I have to go now,” Peggy whispered.

Angie nodded, her eyes rimmed with tears. “I'll miss you.”

“I'll miss you too.”

The urge to kiss Angie was powerful, but there were too many people. All they could do was squeeze each others hands before Peggy leg go and headed towards the plane. She didn't cry, even though she felt like she should. Her chest was tight, but she didn't feel the urge to cry.

It wasn't until she saw Angie standing at the window, waving at her. Peggy's eyes burned and she quickly made her way to the lavatory. She cried for a couple minutes. It was an ugly type of crying, almost painful; by the way she was done, her face was red and her nose was running. There was a knock on the door, a stewardess telling her the flight was taking off shortly. Peggy cleaned herself up the best she could, then went back to her seat.

She slept nearly the whole way there, and felt disoriented when they landed. She slipped on sunglasses as she exited the plane, and saw Jarvis waiting for her.

“Miss Carter, welcome to Los Angeles. Ready for another adventure?”

Peggy smiled gently. “As always, Mister Jarvis.”

“Are you alright?”

“Oh, I slept too much on the plane,” she said. It wasn't a lie. 

Her job started almost immediately, and it involved a dead, frozen woman, pulled out of a lake. It was bizarre, to say the least. The air was warm, but this woman was completely frozen. She learned that the substance that was causing this may have come from Isodyne Energy.

She and Daneil went to the Isodyne Energy lab shortly after that. They had some trouble getting in, but Peggy, always thinking on her feet, figured a way in. There she met a scientist named Jason Wilkes. A charming, sweet man. He had her taste a wine he made, he smiled at her a lot. Angie immediately jumped into her head. Peggy almost told Jason about her girlfriend, to prevent him from getting his hopes up. Instead, she told Jason about the work she was doing and he said he would help her.

After she was kicked out by the receptionist, she went back to the house, where she finally met Ana Jarvis. She was a lovely woman, an affectionate woman. She hugged Peggy, tightly, almost as soon as they met.

“She doesn't really hug,” Jarvis told his wife. Peggy did hug, but only people she trusted wholeheartedly. Otherwise, she was very stiff.

The day gradually got worse. She spent some time at a racetrack, where she met actress Whitney Frost. Despite being an actress, Frost was nothing like Angie. Her face was steely, controlled, almost cold (no pun on her name). Her husband, who possibly had some involvement with the frozen woman was less than helpful. 

Finding another frozen person, following another man who they had been working with, Henry, becoming frozen and kidnapping Jason Wilkes. Jason ended up being alright, but Henry was not so lucky after being shot. Shortly after that, Jason asked her out. She felt a twinge of guilt and turned Jason down. 

It was a strange day, even for her. When she got back to the mansion, she was exhausted and immediately retired to her room. After changing into her pajamas, she picked up the phone and dialed a very familiar number.

“English,” Angie breathed.

“Hello, Angie. I'm sorry for calling so late. It's been a long day.”

“No, it's fine. I just got home from rehearsals. Apparently it's Hell month, instead of Hell week,” Angie sighed. Peggy could practically hear her roll her eyes.

“I'm sure it'll be amazing when it's done. Just make sure you're eating and sleeping well.”

“Yes, dear,” Angie giggled.

“So, tell me about rehearsals, or anything else that's been going on in your life,” Peggy said as she lied down in bed.

“Well,” Angie took a deep breath, meaning she had a lot to say. And she did, between drama amongst the actors, a broken leg, a panic attack. “And I almost tripped on stage.”

“Wow, Angie, I'm sorry--”

“No! No, it's part of the gig. It's fun.”

Peggy chuckled softly. “Angie?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you sing me one of your songs? Until one of us falls asleep?”

“Sure, Pegs.”

Angie normally belted songs when she sang, especially showtunes, but she sang this song more softly, putting in an uncharacteristic warmth. Peggy wasn't sure if that was how the song actually sounded, or she was doing this for Peggy's benefit. Either way, it was lovely. Peggy wanted to hear the whole thing, to listen to Angie's voice all night, but the exhaustion of the day overtook her. She fell asleep with the phone clutched in her hand and Angie's soft voice in her ear.

When she awoke the next day, the phone was still by her head, but had fallen out of her hand. She put the receiver to her ear, somehow hoping. Just a dial-tone, of course, so she hung the phone up, got dressed, and went to the kitchen.

Howard was awake but barely. He was sitting at the kitchen table, drinking a cup of coffee in his swimsuit.

“Peggy,” he mumbled, nodding in her direction. “Sleep well?”

“I did. Did you sleep at all?”

He grinned. “I did. Very well.” His eyebrows bounced up and down, and Peggy got his meaning.

“Did she leave already?” Peggy asked as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

“She had places to be,” was all he said. “What do you have going on today?”

“Sitting by the pool, reading a book,” she said casually, smirking at Howard.

“Coy looks good on you, Peg,” Howard said with a grin, sipping his coffee. “By the way, who were you talking to last night?”

Peggy froze. “What?”

“My guest wanted to make a call last night, but the line was busy for a while.”

Peggy frowned a little. She fell asleep pretty quickly into her call with Angie, so either Angie fell asleep too and the call continued, or Angie purposely stayed on the line, either singing or talking to a sleeping Peggy. Howard was good at reading her, so she told the truth.

“Angie.”

“Ah. Well, have a good day,” Howard said, finishing his coffee. Peggy expected him to press it, but he didn't. Instead he got up and went out to the pool. Something then caught Peggy's eye; Jarvis, in a wrestling outfit. She had to bite her tongue as she made her way outside.

“Mister Jarvis? Pray tell, what are you doing?”

“I have been working out, Miss Carter. I would like to be of better use on your missions. Would you like to spar with me?”

“I don't think that is such a good idea.” Peggy was looking at Jarvis and could not see any muscle on the man; he seemed to just be skin and bones.

“Come on,” he provoked her, nudging her shoulder.

“Mister Jarvis.”

“Come on,” he said again, nudging her harder.

Irritated, she grabbed him and flipped him over her shoulder. Her smugness was short-lived as Jarvis tripped her in a swift movement, then pinned her. Despite the awkward position they were in, there was nothing sexual about it, but Peggy couldn't help but wonder what Angie's reaction would be seeing Peggy and Jarvis, their hips much too close. Ana didn't seemed to be bothered, but Angie had some insecurities about these things. She could imagine Angie's red face.

When she arrived at work, she met Daniel's girlfriend, a nurse named Violet. She was very sweet, but Daniel was being strange. Peggy remembered how hung up he was on her, and wondered if those feelings lingered. Violet did not seem to sense the awkwardness and invited Peggy on their date with them.

Peggy was being invited places by everyone. Later that day, Jason invited her out so they could talk. It was a nice evening, they danced, talked about their lives a little. Jason was an easy person to talk to. Apparently other people didn't like the idea of Jason's loose lips, because some men attacked them. Naturally, it was sorted out, with Jason's help.

This Zero Matter substance, it was a confusing thing. Peggy considered herself pretty smart, she understood codes and she was decent with mathematics, but she was not a scientist. Jason had explained some of the concepts to her, and she thought she understood the basics, but the majority of it was much too complicated. Regardless, she knew she had to to do something, get this figured out. Jason understood Zero Matter, but he was still a civilian. 

He certainly didn't deserve to die. Once again, someone Peggy was close to, was gone. Gone before she could actually say goodbye, like so many in her life. He was just gone. She couldn't even be sure he was dead, which made it more frustrating, the uncertainty. But she was pretty sure he was dead. 

When she called Angie that night, Angie almost immediately could tell something was wrong. 

“Angie, good evening.”

“What's wrong, English?”

Peggy almost didn't want to tell Angie. Telling her things that involved Peggy's work brought her in too close. It made Peggy feel very anxious. But she also liked to talk to Angie.

“Someone I had become friends with died,” she said in a soft voice.

“Oh, Pegs, I'm so sorry. Was it sudden?”

“Yes, it was. Very sudden.”

She heard Angie sigh. “I wish I could be there for you.”

“I do too, Angie.”

“How's the work going?”

“Um, it's going well,” she lied. Having a civilian die was not a good outcome. “We're making good headway.”

“Great, Pegs! I wish you could tell me what's going on. My imagine's goin' wild.”

Peggy chuckled. “You have a good imagination, so I bet it's good. Probably better than what I'm doing. So, how is the musical coming along?”

“Real good! I think we're gonna be ready by opening night.”

“I will try my best to be there.”

There was a pause, then Peggy heard a noise she assumed was Angie clicking her tongue. 

“I had a feeling you'd say that. Just,” Angie sighed, “do what you can.”

“I promise, I will do everything in my power to get back to New York as soon as I can.”

“I love you, Peggy. Again, I'm sorry about your friend.”

“Thank you. I love you too, Angie.”

“Do you want me to sing to you again?”

“About that. Did you stay on the line last night?”

Angie giggled. “I missed hearing the sound of you sleeping. Your snoring, that little popping noise you make with your tongue, when you sometimes talk in your sleep.”

“Did I say anything of importance?”

“Just that you miss me and you miss having sex with me.”

Peggy chuckled and stretched out on her bed. “Yes, I would like you to sing to me.”

She heard Angie clear her throat before she started singing. Peggy didn't recognize this song, but it was soothing nonetheless. It almost made her forget that Jason was gone. Briefly. She rested her head on her pillow and let Angie's gentle voice wash over her. She could almost picture Angie singing in front of her, could almost feel Angie's hands holding Peggy's. Peggy held her own hand to compensate for this. She stayed awake longer than the night before, but soon she was struggling. Just as she was on the verge of sleep, Angie stopped singing.

“Peggy?”

“Hm?” Peggy forced her eyes open and pressed the phone closer to her ear. “What is it?”

Angie didn't say anything for a minute. There was tapping noise on the other side of the phone. Peggy woke up a little bit more.

“What's wrong?”

“Nothing's wrong. I just...” Peggy was pretty sure she heard Angie swallow. “Nothing. I'll keep singing.”

Peggy made a small noise of protest but Angie gently shushed her and started singing. Angie clearly had something important to say and Peggy couldn't figure out why she wouldn't say it. It was Peggy's job to be the emotionally awkward one.

As she started to drift off again, her thoughts switched between whatever Angie was going to tell her, and the unfortunate end of Jason Wilkes. Despite Angie's soft voice, Peggy slipped into an uneasy sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The difficulty of writing this one was figuring out how to write the events of season 2, but not in great detail because we already know what happened. I'm not changing the overall plot of season 2, just the romantic relationships involving Peggy.


	11. Chapter 11

The past couple weeks continued to be bizarre. Jason Wilkes went from being dead, to being accused of being a former spy, to not really being dead but intangible from a side effect of the Zero Matter. And actress Whitney Frost was more than she seemed. Peggy knew Frost must have been affected by the Zero Matter in some way, but she didn't find that out until a little bit later.

Peggy was first attacked at the Stark mansion, nearly strangled. She did not tell Angie about this.

And interacting with a man who was, in some ways, not there. He talked about how he missed food, since he couldn't eat. He didn't necessarily need to eat, nor did he feel any human needs, but he still missed it. Peggy felt for him. She couldn't imagine what that felt like.

As for Whitney Frost, Peggy learned she really was not who she seemed. Her real name was Agnes Cully. Actresses changing their names for their career was a very common thing (especially with Agnes as a name) but Whitney Frost was no ordinary actress. She had been affected by the Zero Matter in a completely different way. Powers, of some kind. 

But, again, she didn't find this out until later. First, she had to deal with the man who had attempted to kill her. After some lying from Peggy (involving an injection that would just give him a bad cold) the man gave them the information they needed. Unfortunately, it appeared something happened to him. Something involving Whitney Frost. She just didn't know what that was yet.

Zero Matter really was a strange substance, the way it was affecting Jason. He seemed to have a connection to it, like it was calling to him. Coming in contact with it caused him to briefly become tangible, but only briefly. Not many things frightened Peggy, but this did.

When she saw how it was affecting Whitney Frost, at the warehouse, she truly realized how dangerous this was. Frost was having a similar reaction Wilkes was having, but she had her physical body. And she knew how to control it. Jason told her Frost was likely trying to become more powerful and had a plan to do so.

On a different note. Peggy also hated wearing wigs and pretending to be a dumb American. She had no inclination towards thinking Americans were dumb (though she met plenty who were), but this was always the persona she took. Her natural accent was too recognizable. A lot of people aware of the SSR knew about the British agent. The British woman agent. But when her job called for it, she acted. She played the ditz. She thought about Angie, when Angie was feigning ignorance to her customers at the diner.

But she did like using the memory inhibitor, especially on a sexist jackass. It was a nice moment in an otherwise stressful day.

This she told about Angie when she called that night. She and Angie hadn't spoken as much lately, as both were very busy. So when Peggy called, Angie was beyond happy.

“Oh, English! Long time no... talk.”

“Yes, it's been too long. A week?”

“It feels like a year.” Angie sighed wistfully. “I missed your voice, your accent.”

“Which reminds me. I tried out my acting abilities today.”

“Oh?”

“Again, I can't say too much, but it involved a wig and an American accent. A ditzy one.”

Angie made a squealing noise in, what sounded like, her throat. “Oh, Pegs, I wish I got to see that. What'd the wig look like?”

“Long and straight, with bangs. Red hair.”

“Sounds sexy,” Angie said in a low voice and Peggy remembered it had been far too long since they were together, since they touched. She was remembering it too much. “God, I miss you.”

When Peggy reflected the sentiment, Angie pressed it. “I really miss you. I keep smelling your pillow, but it's starting to lose your scent.”

“We'll be together soon.”

“You don't know that.”

Angie was right, Peggy didn't. But she wanted to be positive, for her own sanity. “No.”

“When we are together, though, I'm gonna kiss you so much, kiss you until we're both dizzy.”

Peggy swallowed. “That sounds lovely.”

“Run my tongue down your neck,” Angie sighed. She sounded like she was turning herself on and Peggy almost laughed. She would laugh if it wasn't having the intended effect on her. 

“And then what?”

“My hand will slip between your legs, um,” Angie paused. “I'll touch you where you wanna be touched. Touch you until you're begging.”

Despite the fact Angie was stumbling over her words a little, Peggy had to close her eyes and take a deep breath.

“I'll touch you until you...” Angie seemed to be trying to find the right word.

“Come?” Peggy helpfully supplied. Her neck felt hot immediately after saying that.

Peggy definitely heard Angie swallow before she mumbled, “yes.”

Angie was precious when she became embarrassed, which really wasn't often. But she became embarrassed from dirty talk, but she was slowly getting better. Though, saying it through the phone must have made it stranger. Regardless, Peggy was definitely feeling it. Oh, she was feeling it.

“I sort of hate you right now,” Peggy laughed.

“Yeah? Sorry. I hate myself right now too, if that helps,” Angie said. “I thought it'd be sexy to do this. I've never done that before.”

“Neither have I, but, we could...” Peggy cleared her throat. “Continue?”

“On the phone?”

“We don't have a lot of other options.”

“True. Hm. Okay.” Angie took a deep breath. “Peggy. I wanna press my body against yours, feel you.”

Peggy's hands gripped her robe for a moment before opening it and slipping her hand between her legs, imagining it was Angie's. It had been a long time since she had done this herself, since with Angie around, she didn't need to. It was briefly strange. She had considered doing it a couple times, but it almost felt like cheating on Angie.

“My hand is between your legs. My finger slides into you.” Angie sounded more confident than before, but Peggy couldn't help but note the breathiness of her voice. “Then my mouth is there, tasting you, my tongue, my tongue...”

Angie let out a shaky breath. Peggy had fallen into a rhythm of her own—she was pretty sure Angie was doing something similar—and was now resting on her pillow, knees up in the air. Any feeling of weirdness was now gone. It was the last thing on her mind. Now, it was Peggy's own hand and Angie's voice. Though, Angie seemed to have given up trying to describe the things she wanted to do to Peggy. Now, she was babbling almost incoherently, repeating the word “touching” a lot, then “licking.”

“Angie, I'm going to take it from here,” Peggy said gently. “Angie, are you touching yourself.”

Angie breathed out a “yes” and Peggy continued. “How do you feel right now?”

“So good, but I wish it was your hands.”

“Just imagine it's me, imagine those are my hands, holding you close. Imagine my fingers, slowing sliding into you, rubbing tight circles. Getting you close, so close.”

“Jeez, English, your voice...” Angie gasped.

“Are you close, my dear?”

“So close, I'm--” Angie briefly went silent and Peggy heard a soft gasp. “Shit.”

Peggy pressed the phone as close to her ear as she could. “I really wish I could have been the one to do that.”

“Trust me, Pegs, your voice alone would've put me over the edge.” Angie exhaled loudly. “I needed that, though. I haven't gotten off since you left.”

“Neither have I, actually. Too busy.”

“You still haven't,” Angie reminded her. “I didn't hear you.”

Peggy smiled. Angie was always looking out for her. “You're very right.”

Angie's voice suddenly went very low, husky almost. “I want to hear you.”

So, Peggy took her hand, which had been resting on her hips while she was talking to Angie, and slid t between her legs. Angie was whispering gentle, encouraging words into her ear. Peggy was already close, listening to Angie from just a moment ago, so between Angie's voice and her hand, she was there in a matter of minutes. She involuntarily let go of the phone and it fell onto the bed beside her head. Once she caught her breath, she picked up the phone again and she heard Angie laugh.

“I miss that loud voice of yours, English.”

“I'm surprised you heard that, since the phone fell away.”

“Oh, I heard it. Anyways, Pegs, I gotta get up early, so I should hit the hay.”

“Alright, Angie. Good night, darling. I love you.”

“I love you, too, English. Sleep tight.”

Peggy stayed on the line, as did Angie, and she listened to Angie's gentle breathing for a moment longer before Angie hung up. She kept the phone pressed against her ear, Angie's voice still ringing in her head. She hated having to end the calls and each time seemed worse.

She also realized that Angie didn't offer to sing to her, and it was probably nothing, she probably forgot, or she was resting her voice. Regardless, Peggy missed it and it took her awhile to fall asleep.

The next day they—herself, Daniel, Jarvis, Rose, and Samberly—went to the Roxxon building. Her unfortunate interactions with Jones had come in handy, since she had the key for the elevators. She eventually broke away from the group and went after Frost. This was the first time she really interacted with Whitney since finding out what was happening with her. She didn't know what to expect, but, while she was a pretty smart person, she also liked to make things up as she went. 

At first, it seemed like it might be going well, but that was very, very brief. Frost had no interest in being “fixed” and she attacked. Peggy had punched many men twice her size and still managed to make an impact, but when she punched Frost, a woman about her size, with no noticeable physical strength, shook off the punch like it was nothing. It must be the Zero Matter, Peggy had told herself.

Then, she experienced the Zero Matter firsthand. Frost got a hold of Peggy, her forearm, and gripped her tightly. The pain was terrible, like her skin was burning off, then like needles were stabbing into her veins. Peggy felt many kinds of pain, but this was something new, something almost unbearable. But she was able to break free, before she fell over an edge. She held tightly, but as Frost reached for her again, she let go.

Being in contact with Zero Matter was one pain, being impaled was another. She briefly felt a powerful stabbing pain in her stomach, then nothing. She was vaguely aware of Daniel yelling her name, then he was, along with Jarvis, trying to carefully lift her off the rebar. It was a slow process, but her body seemed to be in shock and she still couldn't feel anything. She could hear Jarvis whimpering, Daniel muttering nervous swears under his breath. As soon as she was off the rebar, she threw up, and the pain returned.

Her next memory was being brought to Daniel's fiancee's house. Violet, the sweet girl, didn't ask questions as she stitched up Peggy.

“It was a clean wound. Whatever did this to her, it missed her vital organs,” Violet said, speaking more to Jarvis and Daniel. “No extraneous activities for a while.” This she said to Peggy, who nodded weakly.

“Thank you, Violet,” she muttered before slipping into a painkiller induced sleep.

When she awoke a little bit later, Daniel was sitting beside her.

“Glad to see you're okay,” he said in a weak voice. Peggy smiled at him.

“I've been through worse,” she assured him. This was definitely in her top five, though.

“Miss Carter,” Jarvis said, entering the room, “I've brought the car around.”

“Thank you, Mister Jarvis.” She started to sit up and Jarvis came over to help her.

“Are you sure?” Violet asked. “It might be better for you to stay here, so I can keep an eye on you.”

Peggy shook her head slowly. “No, I should get back. Thank you, Violet.”

When they got back to the mansion, Jarvis helped her into bed and set out some tea for her. The idea of drinking hot tea, though, sounded very unappealing at the moment. But she didn't tell Jarvis that. Jason stayed behind for a bit.

Peggy switched on the radio, a familiar song playing. She smiled weakly.

“It's your song.”

Jason smiled back at her, but only briefly before he started flickering. Panicked, Peggy sat up, trying to ignore the horribly twinging in her abdomen.

“Jason!”

For a brief moment, he was gone. Then he was back, looking very confused.

“Jason, what happened? Are you alright?”

“It... felt like it was it was drawing me in. I heard your voice and I followed it back.”

“Jason, this is just going to become worse. There must be something you can do,” Peggy said. She leaned back in the bed.

Jason shook his head, looking very distraught.

“You're a scientist, Jason. Touching the Zero Matter made you physical, maybe you can do something with that.”

“It's a tricky thing, Peggy,” he sighed. “The Zero Matter is a frightening thing. You saw what it did to Whitney Frost.”

“You're a containment scientist. Maybe you can build yourself something, something that contains the Zero Matter and make you physical.”

Jason hummed thoughtfully. “That could work. I'll talk to Howard. You should get some sleep.”

Peggy was already ahead of him. She wasn't feeling much pain at the moment, as long as she didn't move much. She smiled sleepily.

“Good night, Jason,” she whispered, her eyes already closed.

“Good night, Peggy.” He turned off the light as he left, and Peggy was almost immediately asleep.

It was a deep sleep, a dreamless one. . The next morning, the first thing Peggy was aware of was the sunlight, shining through her eyelids, then a gradual throbbing in her side. Eyes still closed, she shifted slightly, which made the pain worse. She groaned. A gentle hand brushed her hair, followed by shushing.

Peggy slowly opened her eyes, and met bright blue ones.

“Mornin' English.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long! I've gotten caught up writing Jane the Virgin fics.
> 
> I'll try to get this written in a more timely fashion.
> 
> And if you haven't already, sign the petition to get Agent Carter on Netflix. Season 2 wasn't perfect, but I still love this show and want more of it.
> 
> https://www.change.org/p/netflix-save-agent-carter-bring-her-to-netflix

It took Peggy a minute to process Angie Martinelli sitting next to her. Angie shouldn't be here. She wasn't here a few hours ago. Now, she was in Peggy's bed, smiling at her.

“This pain medicine must be very strong, because I see you in front of me,” Peggy mumbled.

Angie brushed a thumb over Peggy's forehead. “Jarvis called me last night and got me a flight out here. I got here a half an hour ago. Oh, Pegs, I was a wreck when I heard what happened.”

Angie's hand rested right above where Peggy's injury was. It was starting to hurt more, so she tried to not move.

“You probably wouldn't've called me, huh?” Angie said softly, her neck bent down towards Peggy's ear.

Peggy turned her head just enough to look Angie in the eye. “Do you want me to be honest?”

Angie chewed her bottom lip. She wouldn't look at Peggy, but Peggy could see tears rimming her eyes. “It's just... we promised we would be honest with each other. What if something happened? What if this was worse?”

Despite the throbbing in her side, Peggy sat up and took Angie's chin in her hand. Angie tried to keep herself from looking at Peggy at first, but soon her puffy red-rimmed blue eyes flickered up to Peggy. Peggy could see her jaw was clenched very tightly.

“Angie, no, I wouldn't have called, unless it was really bad. I've been through worse. This was bad, yes, but I was pretty confident I wasn't going to die.”

Angie was quiet, but tears were starting to stream down her face. Peggy kissed her on the tip of the nose, then her lips.

“I'm sorry I scared you, Angie. It was an unfortunate accident.”

Angie sniffed loudly and wiped her nose on the side of her arm. “Jarvis just said you were impaled by something and that I should get out here.”

“Jarvis is known for being dramatic. It was a clean wound and missed any organs.”

“But you still had something go through your body,” Angie pointed out, her voice hoarse.

“Yes. But I'm okay.”

“You look pale.”

Peggy clicked her tongue as she tried to choose her words carefully. “I did lose some blood. You look a little pale, too.”

“I didn't sleep well. Or at all.”

Peggy ran her hand up and down Angie's arm. “You should get some sleep. We'll talk more later.”

Angie shook her head. “I can sleep later. I want to help you.”

Peggy knew Angie couldn't really be reasoned with right now, so she dropped it. Angie slipped off the bed, pressed a kiss to Peggy's cheek, then left the room. A couple minutes later, she returned with a tray of tea and oatmeal. She looked a little more relaxed and had stopped crying. 

Peggy sat up as much as she could when Angie placed the tray on the bed.

“The tea is warm enough, but not too hot, and the oatmeal is easy to chew, easy to digest.”

Peggy picked up her spoon and smiled warmly at Angie. “Thank you very much, darling.” Then she noticed a couple pills on the tray. “What are those?”

“Oh, well, um a girl named Violet dropped them off. These are antibiotics,” which she handed to Peggy. “And these, are stool softeners. You know, so you're not--”

Peggy laughed, which she regretted immediately. “I understand. Thank you, Angie.”

She took the pills, then ate some of the oatmeal. Both were uncomfortable, as the very process of swallowing was painful. She must have made a face because Angie, who was watching her closely, made a noise of concern.

“Maybe I should've gotten you yogurt.”

“I'm okay, Angie. It'll heal.” Peggy smiled at Angie, to show she really was okay. Angie still looked concerned. 

Before she could say more, someone knocked on the door. It was Jarvis. When Peggy welcomed him in, he came with a box of medical supplies, followed by Ana.

“Your bandages need to be changed and I need to check your stitches.”

“Of course.” Peggy very carefully turned over and exposed her side. A wave of nausea came over her, but she fought it off and closed her eyes. She wanted to avoid having to see her wounds, she had seen enough of her own injured body. She did open her eyes though, as Jarvis skillfully adjusted her stitches, to see Angie and Ana watching her. Ana looked pale and Angie looked on the verge of tears again.

“That looks painful,” Ana said. 

“It is,” Peggy said slowly. 

“Oh, Pegs, that looks awful.”

Peggy forced a smile. “Thank you, Angie.”

“I'm sorry. It's just... I've never seen an impalement before, ya know? My brother did crack his head open once. That was gross.”

“You should've seen it when the metal was going through it. It was bad, wasn't it, Mister Jarvis?”

 

“It was quite a sight, Miss Carter,” Jarvis said stiffly.

Angie had a small smile on her face. “When I was eight or so, I fell outta' tree and my arm was completely turned the wrong way. I screamed, and my brother said it looked cool.”

“I've broken both arms and my right ankle twice.”

“I am not sure I like this conversation,” Ana said quietly. She was looking a little green.

“I'm sorry, Mrs. Jarvis,” Peggy laughed, regretting it again. She groaned.

“Miss Carter, I'd appreciate it if you didn't pop these stitches.”

“I apologize, Mister Jarvis,” Peggy said, rolling her eyes at Angie, who giggled.

“It's fine. I'm done anyway. Don't push yourself, Miss Carter.”

As he and Ana left the room, Ana shot Peggy a look. Her eyes were wide and she looked like Angie had earlier. After they were gone, Angie helped Peggy get back into her original position, then curled up next to her. Peggy put her arm around Angie's shoulder.

“I wonder what Jarvis thinks about us,” Angie mumbled. “He must know we're together.”

“Well, he did find you walking around naked.”

“I'm naked a lot, Pegs. That proves nothing.”

This was true. Even before she and Peggy started their relationship, Angie was known for walking around naked a lot. Between having a large family and being an actress, Angie had very little sense of modesty. The first time Peggy experienced this, she nearly had a heart-attack. On top of Angie being very attractive (and Peggy wasn't allowing herself to admit that yet) Peggy just wasn't used to women parading themselves around like that. Her mother always taught her to be modest. While in the army, she had relaxed on that a little bit, but she still tried to have an assemblage of modesty. Being the only woman, she had to. These were men who hadn't been around women in months, years, and she was worried showing herself like that could cause problems. At least, that was another lesson her mother taught her; a woman's body is often to blame for a man's actions.

So, when she saw Angie walking around, without a care in the world, Peggy had trouble processing it. Now, however, she welcomed it. Obviously, where Jarvis was concerned, it could be a little bit problematic.

“Jarvis doesn't know about your inclination towards nudity, though. He probably saw you and assumed there may be a sexual nature to our relationship. Which is true.”

Angie hummed and looked down at the bed. “He won't say anything, will he?”

“Absolutely not. I trust him completely. Him calling you proves that he respects whatever our relationship is.”

Angie was quietly stroking Peggy's hair, humming softly, but she was humming a soft this time.

“What are you going to do about the musical?”

“I told them a family member was gravely ill, so I had to come out to LA immediately. I think it'll be okay.”

Angie didn't sound completely convinced. 

“You don't know how long you'll be here, do you?” Peggy asked.

Angie sighed. “No. You are in better shape than I expected, but it's still pretty bad. I'd hate to go home and then something happens to you. You could take a turn, get an infection.”

“I admire your confidence,” Peggy said sarcastically.

“I mean it.” Angie sat up and turned to Peggy. “I'd feel awful.”

“I promise, it won't get worse. And I don't want you missing your musical. You promise me that, okay?”

Angie paused before nodding. “Okay. But I'm staying a couple more days.”

“That's fine. But don't fuss too much.”

Angie leaned forward and nuzzled Peggy's nose with hers. “Oh, I'm gonna fuss like crazy.”

Angie fell asleep shortly after that, while Peggy dozed. In the early afternoon, she finally decided she couldn't stay in bed anymore, so she, slowly, got up, and made her way to the lab, where Howard and Jason were working.

“Oh good, you're not dead,” Howard said cheerfully when he saw Peggy.

“Thank you for your concern, Howard. What're you working on?”

“Based on your idea, we're building a containment device for me,” Jason said. “Something needs to be done before this gets worse.”

“The problem is, we need Zero Matter to make this work,” Howard said.

Peggy gingerly sat down on a stool. “I know where we can get Zero Matter. Whitney Frost. She's apparently made up of it. A lot of it. I can get a blood sample from her. She'll be at a fundraiser tonight.”

“You?” Howard asked, skeptically. “Last I heard you have a hole through your body and you can barely walk.”

“I'm fine,” Peggy said, sliding off the stool. As soon as she got to her feet, a stabbing pain radiated through her body. She closed her eyes, making a soft grunting noise. “Okay. Fine. We'll figure something out. We'll use someone else.”

“Who could possibly replace you?” Jarvis asked.

Then it occurred to her. It was an awful idea, but there was really only one other person who could match Peggy physically, if something were to happen. 

“I have a terrible idea. Dottie Underwood.”

Jason, Howard, and Jarvis all exchanged looks. Howard shrugged. “That is a terrible idea, Pegs, but it might work. If we can control her.”

“I have some ideas,” Peggy said.

Before Peggy left to get Dottie, she made sure Angie was okay. When she got back to their room, Angie was just waking up, her hair sticking out in all directions. She looked adorable.

“English,” Angie said in a hoarse voice. “You look better.”

“And you look like you slept well.” Peggy carefully sat on the edge of the bed and stroked Angie's hair.

Angie wiped something from her eye and smiled. “Yeah. This bed is really comfortable.”

Peggy, very carefully, leaned forward and kissed Angie. Angie deepened the kiss, and Peggy, forgetting herself for a moment, started to put her arms around Angie. She regretted this as the stabbing pain started again and she had to pull back.

Angie sensed it immediately and looked at Peggy sympathetically. “I'm sorry, Pegs. Oh, you're pale.”

Angie kissed her on the forehead. Then Peggy remembered why she came here; she needed to talk to Angie about her misson.

“Uh, Angie, there's something I need to talk to you about.”

“Yeah, Pegs?”

Peggy inhaled and exhaled slowly through her nose. “Do you remember Dottie Underwood?”

Something passed over Angie's blue eyes and Peggy saw her swallow. “Yes.”

“Well, because I'm injured, I can't go through with the mission I need to do, I need someone who... can match me.”

“So you're gonna use Dottie,” Angie finished, her voice tight.

“Yes. I'm going to break Dottie out of her prison. I just wanted to let you know what's going on.”

Angie's eyes were looking towards Peggy, but she wasn't looking directly at her. Her eyes were unfocused. Peggy didn't say anything, waiting for Angie to say something. Then Angie's eyes suddenly focused and looked directly into Peggy's.

“What if she tries to hurt you? You can't fight back,” Angie said, her voice quivering. Peggy's heart broke.

“Angie,” Peggy gripped Angie's upper arms. “Dottie is bad, but she isn't dumb. She knows it would be a lot worse for her if she does something to me. She won't hurt me.”

She rested her forehead against Angie's and whispered, “I promise.”

“I still don't like that she kissed you,” Angie said, her voice clearer than before and a slight smile on her face.

“Neither do I. That's why I love you; you're the exact opposite of her.”

This made Angie smile. When Peggy was getting ready to leave, though, Angie still looked concerned, but she didn't say anything more. She kissed Peggy goodbye and her lips lingered, just a little bit longer than usual.

“Be careful,” Angie said as Peggy was leaving. Peggy flashed her a quick smile.

Peggy's disguise this time was Katherine Wexford, her American accent coming back. Peggy was starting to wonder if she should try to be an actress, because her disguises worked too well. She got into Dottie's cell with very little problems. When they were alone, Dottie continued using her creepy, fake voice.

“What a surprise, Peggy. What brings you here?” She said, smiling at Peggy.

Peggy took a few steps towards Dottie and every step was torture. She leaned on the chair in the middle of the room, trying her best to not show her weakness. She was failing.

“Ah, you're hurt. You need me for something,” Dottie said, her voice sounding a little bit more normal.

“Yes. I need a blood sample from Whitney Frost.”

For a split second, Dottie's eyebrows furrowed. “The actress?”

“She is more than that. She's a scientist and she's been affected by Zero Matter. She's dangerous. You cannot underestimate her,” Peggy quickly added when she saw a smirk spread across Dottie's face. “I mean it.”

“What do I get out of it?”

“You get your freedom, for a little bit. After that? We'll see.”

Dottie's face was unreadable at first, then she clicked her tongue softly. Peggy knew this was an agreement.

“Wait thirty seconds, then use these.” Peggy produced magnets and put them on the chair. “Go to the right after you're out.”

After Peggy left the cell, she smiled at the guard.

“It must be such hard work, walking over this dangerous criminal.”

“Ah, it's not so hard, you just have to be smart and vigilant,” the guard said with a smirk, leaning towards Peggy.

“It's so impressive,” she said, lowering her voice an octave before clearing the distance between them. The guard smiled stupidly against her lips before collapsing. Before heading out, Peggy removed the guard's gun, which she was pretty sure Dottie would try to take.

Shortly after she got outside, where Daniel was waiting, Dottie ran through the door, the opposite direction Peggy had told her. She made a slight face at Daniel, before Daniel shot a net at her.

Dottie scoffed, holding the net up with her hands. “You think this is really going to work?”

Peggy got some enjoyment when Daniel pressed a button and an electrical current went through the net, going through Dottie. Her body spasmed before collapsing to the ground. Peggy walked up to her and pressed the button again, making the unconscious Dottie jolt. It was cruel, yes, but Dottie had put Peggy through a lot. Dottie probably deserved it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long! I keep writing Jetra and neglecting this.
> 
> God, I miss Peggy Carter/Angie/Agent Carter/Cartinelli so much.
> 
> Apparently Netflix has said no to AC, so there's a new petition to still bring it back, in whatever form, whatever platform. It's a plea to Marvel: https://www.change.org/p/marvel-the-fans-want-more-agent-carter

Moving Dottie turned out to be more difficult than Peggy planned. Neither she nor Daniel were in the condition to drag the dead-weight of Dottie around, so they called Jarvis to come help them. Once they got to back to the house, though, and Dottie was set up in a chair, it was less complicated. 

Angie, of course, hovered around while Peggy started changing Dottie's clothes. When Peggy had told her was going to be undressing Dottie Underwood, Angie's face had paled.

“Can't someone else do that?” Angie asked, biting her nails.

“Ana is the only other woman here, and if Dottie wakes up during, I don't want her to get hurt.”

“I don't want you to get hurt either, English,” Angie said quietly. “If she even just punches you in the gut, it's over.”

“Then you can stay and protect me,” Peggy said with a smile. “Remember that self-defense lesson I gave you?”

“You were going easy on me. I don't think I'd stand a fight against an assassin.”

“Still, she needs to be in nice clothes for this to work. She can't go to the fundraiser in this smock.”

Angie sighed, meaning she was giving in, and nodded to Peggy. So Peggy carefully started to pull the smock over Dottie's head, but the movement of Peggy lifting her own arms was too painful and she had to stop.

“Uh, Angie, would it be a bother if you did this?” Peggy asked with a sweet smile.

Angie looked at Peggy, her left eyebrow raised. Peggy kept smiling at her until Angie sighed and said, “Okay.”

Angie extended shaking hands to Dottie, gripped the bottom of the smock, and quickly pulled it over Dottie's head. As soon as it was off, Angie jumped backwards, still scared Dottie was going to wake up. Peggy laughed softly.

“She's still out, Angie. And I can take it from here. Thank you.”

Angie stood off to the side, watching Dottie warily, while Peggy slowly pulled the dress onto Dottie. Then she pulled out a necklace and attached it to Dottie's neck.

“What's that?” Angie asked.

“It's a necklace that has a tracking device, and a neurotoxin. If she tries to take it off, the neurotoxin will be injected into her and she will die.”

Angie looked conflicted. “Wow, that's, intense.”

“Dottie isn't dumb, I don't think she will try. Though, she did try to make an escape earlier. Okay, Angie, I'm going to need help with this next part.” Angie looked at her questioningly. “We need to wash her hair.”

A little bit later, after her hair was washed, Dottie woke up while her hair was being dried. For a brief second, she looked confused and nervous, but it passed. Angie had left the room as soon as Dottie was showing signs of waking up, because she didn't want to face the woman yet. The hairdryer was on while Peggy was talking to Dottie. Dottie frowned.

“I can't hear you,” she said.

Peggy turned it off and explained the plan. A moment later, Jarvis came in, dressed for the evening. He asked her what firearm he would be carrying.

“None,” Peggy replied nonchalantly.

There was some disagreement about that, Peggy's argument being Dottie could easily take the gun from Jarvis, making it worse for everyone. Jarvis argued some more, but conceded the point when it turned out Dottie had managed to swipe his wristwatch, despite her tied hands. After some more protests from Jarvis—Peggy had turned on the hairdryer so Dottie couldn't listen—he gave up.

After that, they went to the lab, where Jason and Angie were. When Dottie saw Angie, her lips curled into a malicious grin.

“Ooh, Angie, it's nice to see you again.”

The look on Angie's face was something Peggy hadn't seen before. It was something of a glare, the way Angie's eyes narrowed, and her teeth were slightly visible. Peggy put a gentle hand on Angie's shoulder. Dottie's blue eyes moved over to Jason, who looked uncomfortable under her eye.

“Who's this?”

“Jason,” Peggy replied shortly.

Dottie looked him up and down, a creepy smile on her face, then she moved towards him, who took a few steps away from her, then tried to slip past her. She reached her hand out and Peggy could see it go through his body. The slight shock on her face was obvious, at least to Peggy.

Jarvis then walked into the room, dressed for the fundraiser. He looked handsome, but very nervous. 

“Miss Underwood,” he nodded at her. “Let's get this over with.”

They all went to the fundraiser. Jarvis and Dottie in a car, Peggy, Daniel, and Angie in a van. Peggy had protested Angie coming along, but Angie was insistent. Peggy wondered if Angie didn't like the idea of her being alone with Daniel, who used to have a crush on Peggy. She regretted telling Angie that.

Everything seemed to be going well, until Jack Thompson showed up, and Jarvis had to keep Dottie from approaching him (and trying to kill him). It was also annoyingly warm in the van. With three bodies in there, breathing all over the place, there was too much carbon dioxide. 

Jarvis was becoming antsy and nervous, especially after almost losing Dottie.

 

“Every second we remain here, puts us in more peril,” he mumbled.

“Mister Jarvis, I want you to distract Thompson while Dottie retrieves the sample.”

“Think you can handle that, Underwood?” Daniel asked.

Dottie made some snide comment about it sounding “complicated” and to the surprise of everyone in the van, and Dottie, Peggy was assuming, Jarvis laid into Dottie, telling her to do her job.

“Yes, sir, Jeeves,” Peggy could hear from Dottie.

While Jarvis and Dottie went their separate ways, and Jarvis went and started to talk to Thompson, Angie stretched out.

“Is this what police work is like?”

“It's not really police work, Miss Martinelli,” Daniel said, his focus more on what Jarvis was saying.

“Angie. And it looks a lot like police work. I know it's not, because you're not police, but...” Angie shrugged.

Then Daniel gave Peggy a funny look.

“How much does she know?”

“I won't lie, Agent Sousa, she knows quite a bit.”

Daniel frowned, then looked between the two of them. Then, Peggy saw something in his eyes, like comprehension.

“Oh.”

When Peggy looked at Angie, Angie had a slightly panicked look on her face, her face paling. Peggy reached out to Angie and felt her tense under her touch.

“Angie, it's okay,” she whispered.

Daniel smiled at them both. “It really is. I'm happy for you, Carter. It's okay, Angie.”

Peggy gently rubbed Angie's knee until she calmed down. Angie swallowed, then took a deep breath.

“Anyway, Angie talks a lot, but she won't tell people about this, I promise.”

“My lips are zipped,” Angie said.

They then heard Whitney's voice. Daniel leaned into the microphone.

“Underwood, did you get the sample?” There was static. “Hello?”

There was nothing. 

“She must have removed her hat,” Peggy sighed. “Shit.”

“Would she just run off like that?” Angie asked. Both Peggy and Daniel gave her a look. “Dumb question, sorry.”

Peggy shook her head. “Well, that's what we get for trusting a trained assassin. I need to do something.”

She got up out of her seat, very slowly. She heard Daniel scoff behind her.

“And what are you gonna do? You, who can barely walk. You can't fight, Peggy.”

“Yeah, I agree with him, Pegs. You're not in shape to do anything.”

“I'll figure something out.” She reached for the door, but felt a sudden searing pain in her side. She froze.

“You okay?” Daniel asked.

“Yeah,” Peggy said, her back to them and her voice coming out much higher than normal.

“You sure?” Angie asked.

She started to turn around and in the light, she, as well as Daniel and Angie, saw the blood on her blouse.

“It looks like you popped your stitches trying to open a door,” Daniel pointed out.

Angie sprang to her feet and helped Peggy sit down, while Daniel pulled out a cloth, which Peggy pressed to her side. Angie sat very close to Peggy, looking very concerned. Peggy had to ever so politely make Angie move back a little bit as Daniel got out a first-aid kit and started to work at her stitches.

“Not fun having your body quits on you, is it?” Daniel mumbled as he carefully did his work on Peggy.

Peggy grunted, irritated, because it wasn't fun. This was probably one of her worst injuries, even worse than when she was shot in her shoulder, even worse than when she was hanged. She had never felt so vulnerable before. It wasn't a pleasant feeling. It did help, though, that Angie's hand was on her arm the whole time.

“There,” Daniel said. “This is just a temporary fix. You should see Violet as soon as you can.”

“Did she want to ask questions? I mean, it must be rather disconcerting having a woman with a hole in her abdomen brought into her home.”

Daniel chuckled softly. “I think she did, but she takes everything in stride. I think she was just glad you didn't die in her home.”

“That would be pretty unfortunate.”

Their conversation was cut short when something landed on top of the van. Angie let out a scream, while Daniel and Peggy sprang into action. The three of them ran outside and saw that a man had fallen on the van roof.

“I'm willing to bet that was Dottie,” Daniel said, looking up at where the man had come from. He checked for ID. “He must be private security.”

Jarvis suddenly came out of the building, in a huff. “There you are. I have repeatedly tried to make contact with you.”

“Where's Dottie?” Peggy asked.

“No idea, but I did manage to recover this.” Jarvis held up the container for the blood.

“She disappeared but left the sample of Zero Matter behind?” Peggy asked. None of this made sense. Dottie was always a question mark, but even this surprised Peggy.

“What about the tracking device?”

“The equipment was ruined when he fell on the van,” Daniel said, pointing at the body.

“Take me inside, Mister Jarvis.”

“I would, Miss Carter, but I was actually just forcefully asked to leave.”

Daniel looked over at the entrance where there were large numbers of people exiting. “Looks like the party is over. If they see us, it's over. We need to leave.”

Peggy looked over at Angie, who looked nervous. She had been unnaturally quiet the whole night.

“Okay,” Peggy said with a sigh. Retreating was the last thing she wanted to do, but with Dottie missing, she had already messed up. And with Angie there, it made it more complicated. She didn't want her to get hurt. 

Angie, who was trying to not look at the dead body on the ground, smiled at Peggy.

“Let's go,” Peggy said. She took Angie's hand and led her to the car.

On their drive back, Angie leaned up against Peggy's shoulder, then fell asleep. Daniel was looking at them, a slight smile appearing.

“She seems like a great girl, Carter.”

Peggy looked down at Angie couldn't stop the smile. “She is.”

“How long have you two been together? How'd it happen?”

“We've been together a little while. A couple months. And how did it happen?” A lump formed in Peggy's throat and she cleared her throat. The honest answer was Angie caught her pleasuring herself to the idea of Angie, then Peggy caught Angie. It was more complicated that that, but that was the start of it. At least, the start of their relationship now. “It just slowly grew. Angie is a very sweet girl.”

Daniel's expression turned serious. “Be careful about how much she knows. We live very dangerous lives, with dangerous people after us. Violet knows very little about what I do.”

Subconsciously, Peggy gripped Angie's arm. “I know, Daniel. It's in the back of my mind constantly. I would hate if anything happened to her, but... I can't lie to her. After we got together, I promised her I'd be honest with her.”

Daniel hummed. “Just be careful.”

Peggy nodded and said, in a quiet voice, “I will.”

When they got back to the mansion, Angie was really out, so Peggy had Jarvis carry her. It was a pretty amusing sight, seeing Angie—who looked like she was dead—being carried in Jarvis' arms. Ana looked at him questioningly and he just shook her head, silently telling her to not ask. 

He started to carry her to their room, but Angie woke up halfway there and squirmed enough that Jarvis almost dropped her.

“I can walk,” Angie mumbled, but to be safe, Peggy held onto Angie's arm and guided her to their room.

Angie laid down on the bed and seemed to be immediately going back to sleep, so Peggy removed her shoes and pulled the covers over Angie. Very carefully, she bent down and pressed a kiss to Angie's forehead.

“Sleep well.”

She considered getting into bed with Angie, and she really wanted to, if only for the fact she was tired, but then there was a gentle knock on the door.

“Miss Carter?”

“You may come in, Mister Jarvis,” Peggy said, trying to not sound annoyed.

Jarvis poked his head in, looked at Angie, then came into the room.

“I'm sorry to interrupt, Miss Carter. I'm sure you need your sleep, but unfortunately Chief Thompson is here. He's looking for you.”

Peggy let out a sharp exhale through her nose. “Tell him I will be right down.”

“Are you sure?”

“It'll be suspicious if I don't go down.”

Jarvis nodded and left the room. Peggy mussed up her hair, making it look like she had just woke up and threw a robe over her shoulders. As she came down the stairs, she saw Thompson waiting in the parlor, looking very smug.

“Good morning, Jack. What brings you here?”

“I was just wondering what you did last night.”

“Hm.” Peggy tapped her chin. “Well, it was a quiet night at home. Had an early dinner, read for a bit, then off to bed.”

“Really, because it looks like you're coming off a long night. Or are those bags just how you look now, Marge?”

Peggy smiled tightly. “Always so charming, Jack. Anyway, I was here last night. Did something happen?”

“Dottie Underwood was seen at the fundraiser event, as well as your butler.”

“He's not my butler, but yes. Mister Jarvis went in Mister Stark's stead. As for Dottie Underwood, that's news to me.”

“Since you like to act, Agent Carter, perhaps you've heard of the name Katherine Wexford?”

Peggy's stomach clenched somewhat, but she didn't let it show on her face. “I knew a Katherine Hornstock... But Wexford? No. Why do you ask?”

Thompson still looked far too smug and Peggy very much wanted to smack that smirk off of him. “I have a flight back to New York. You're coming with me.”

“I can't do that,” Peggy replied evenly.

“I'm not asking. And there's no place in my office for agents who can't follow orders.”

Peggy paused a moment, trying to figure out if Thompson was bluffing. “Well, it's not the best job market for women, but I think I'll be alright.”

Surprisingly, Thompson's expression softened. “Don't do this.”

“Do what?” Peggy asked softly.

“You're chasing boogeymen. Come to New York with me. It's okay to be wrong from time to time.”

“I'm not wrong.”

“How sure are you about that?”

“I'd bet everything I've got.”

“That's a lot to lose.”

A smirk curled at Peggy's lips. “I won't lose.”

Thompson looked her over and didn't look convinced. He shook his head as he turned towards the door.

“We'll see, Carter.”

“He's an asshole,” Angie mumbled in the doorway after he was gone.

Peggy smiled and laughed as she turned to face Angie. “He is.”

“I do like the idea of you coming back to New York, though,” Angie said stepping closer to Peggy.

“I know, but I know I'm not wrong. I need to stop Whitney Frost.”

Angie smiled sadly. “I know. I have to go back to New York tomorrow.”

Angie circled her arms around Peggy's shoulders and kissed Peggy on the tip of the nose, then on her lips. Angie was careful to be gentle as she pulled Peggy close.

“Angie, are you okay?” Peggy asked. Angie breathing shakily and head tucked her head underneath Peggy's chin.

“Your work, Pegs...” Angie heaved a sigh. Peggy could feel her warm breath against her neck. “I knew it was dangerous, but actually being involved... And now Dottie Underwood is out there somewhere.”

“She won't hurt me. Or you.” As Peggy said this, she doubted her words, but Angie was already nervous. “We'll both be okay.”

Angie was quiet, her nose exhaling soft breaths on Peggy's neck. “I love you, English.”

“I love you too, Angie.”

Angie pulled back and kissed Peggy again. When they broke apart, Peggy put her hand on Angie's cheek and stroked her cheekbone with her thumb.

“I think Dottie wants to have sex with you,” Angie said suddenly.

Peggy both laughed and scoffed. “Angie.”

“It's true! Haven't you noticed how she looks at you? I mean, she did kiss you.”

“To kill me.”

“She's probably like a praying mantis; has sex, then kills her mate. She's probably done that before.”

Peggy clicked her tongue. “Well, she did try to kill Howard Stark...”

“See?” Angie gently nudged Peggy's shoulder. 

“I'm not going to have sex with Dottie, though. I don't want to die post-coitus. And, I'm with you.”

Angie took a step back and sighed wistfully. “She is pretty attractive...”

Peggy gaped at her. “Angie!”

Angie kept up the facade for a few seconds before grinning. “I'm kidding, Pegs. I mean, she is attractive, but she's also a horrible person. I do think she wants to have sex with you, though.”

“Well, I'm not going to.”

Angie took Peggy's wrist and brought Peggy's hand up to her lips. “I know, Peggy.”

“Soon, this case will be over and I can come back to New York.”

“I can't wait. The apartment is too big for just me.”

Peggy pulled Angie into a hug and winced slightly when Angie was pressed into her side. “I'm sorry, Angie.”

“Don't be, Pegs. I'm happy that you're doing such good work. You're a hero.”

Tears pricked at Peggy's eyes and she swallowed before kissing Angie, slowly, gently. In that moment, she wondered how she deserved Angie Martinelli, and in that moment, she realized how lucky she was.


End file.
